


The Librarian

by pinuspinea



Series: The Librarian [1]
Category: Dracula & Related Fandoms, Dracula - Bram Stoker, The Historian - Elizabeth Kostova
Genre: Captivity, F/M, Stockholm Syndrome
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-02
Updated: 2019-05-03
Packaged: 2020-02-15 23:47:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 42,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18679753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinuspinea/pseuds/pinuspinea
Summary: High upon a mountain, there is a library, and in the library, a young woman who knows it better than anyone else. That is the world Dora is thrust into after she tries to solve the mystery her parents got involved in, and the world she must somehow survive.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A "what if?" scenario: Dracula catches The Narrator (Dora) in the train and takes her with him to the new library.

The harsh sunshine shining on her face wakes her up eventually. The girl rubs her eyes in a daze before almost jumping out of the dusty bed she has been laid on. Hurried steps carry her to the door of the room before she stops for a moment and thinks twice. Should she open the door and risk ambush on the other side? Shouldn't she first try to see if there is anything at all in the room that could be helpful? Mind made, the she turns around and gives the room a critical view over. There is not much in the bare bedroom in addition to the bed she was laid on, but the wardrobe piques her interest. The girl slowly approaches the wooden piece of furniture and opens the doors quickly. Only her coat hangs on the lone bar inside.

The girl runs fingers through her dark hair and takes in a shaky breath. Her eyes return to the door of the room, which remains closed, but she can hear quiet movement on the other side. With one final look at the window that only reveals mountainside not far away and a sliver of sun peeking over the top, she slowly walks over to the door and collects her nerves.

The door is unlocked to her surprise. The girl suspiciously looks at the revealed room from her advantage point and notes a lone figure sitting just some steps away. The figure seems to sense something, since the head turns, and a face is revealed.

"Oh, you're awake already," the woman says. The girl frowns at her and raises her hand slowly to her neck. She can't feel any puncture wounds on her throat, but that can't be right, can it?

The woman's eyes follow the movement. She looks tired when she realises what the girl is checking for, and that is enough to tell that she too is aware of the whole situation, perhaps even more.

Has she been taken by _him_ too?

"Where's my dad?" the girl asks slowly. The woman blinks and frowns.

"No one else has been brought here," the woman murmurs. "Sundown's not long from now, and we have a lot to talk about."

The girl nods her head mutely and moves closer to the strange woman. Her eyes follow the girl's figure from the door of the bedroom until she sits down onto an armchair in front of the occupied sofa. This room is a bit more lived in, but still rather bare. Comfortable enough, she supposes.

"What's your name?" the woman asks. The girl blinks.

"I'm Dora - or Dorothy," she answers, "and my parents are Paul and Helen." Recognition flashes at the woman's eyes when the names of her parents are revealed, and her lips open just a hunch.

"My name is Eszter," the woman tells Dora. Curious eyes never leave her form. There is still an open book in Eszter's lap, forgotten for the moment, and her legs are covered with a woollen blanket. Eszter apparently is satisfied with what she sees, since she nods her head and finally lowers her eyes to her lap. Her hands move quickly as she slips a bookmark between the pages and carefully lowers the book onto the coffee table between the sofa and the armchair. Eszter seems to be composing herself.

"How did you end up here?" Eszter finally asks and looks at Dora with a guarded look. It occurs to her that Eszter can't know all about their situation if she looks that frightened and uncertain. Her pale blue eyes flitter from Dora to the door of the bedroom as if she expects something else to step out.

"My parents got too close and I guess I did too," Dora says and bites her lip in deep thought. "My dad started telling me about him a few months ago, and then he found out my mom is alive and that perhaps he could find her and… then they both tracked Dracula to the Pyrenees and I tried to follow them, but he found me on the train and…"

"He was too quick or too strong or beat you in the game and so you were brought here," Eszter finishes. Dora nods her head grimly. She is certain she won't make it out on her own even if she tried. Being taken there means she'll eventually lose her life there.

"Did he bring anyone else than me?" Dora asks finally. Eszter shakes her head mutely. Dora lays her head in her hands and takes in a couple of deep breaths.

"Were there others with you when he took you?" Eszter asks.

"A friend," Dora murmurs.

A heavy silence encompasses the room. Eszter seems to be thinking furiously, but she doesn't give any comforting words. Apparently, she knows too well that hope at this stage would be futile.

Dora looks at the young woman for a long while deep in thought. Eszter seems a bit older than her, though not by much. Her face is still soft with youth, although her eyes seem much older and warier than they should be.

"How long have you been here?" Dora asks eventually to fill the silence. Eszter flinches a bit, not expecting to be addressed. She takes in a shaky breath.

"Years," she answers. "He wanted my mother. I was the best way to control her, so he took me, too."  
Dora nods her head and thinks about her own father and the fate she can't be certain of. She can't bear to think of what might have happened to her parents, to Barley, to Master James. Would he have let them live? Will he use them to control her?

"And he's let you live?" Dora asks uncertainly. She can't be sure if there are bite-marks on Eszter's neck, if there are deep wounds on her body that don't seem to heal no matter how much time passes. Eszter nods her head and crosses her arms at her chest.

"For now, at least," Eszter answers. It's clear without being said that he might change his mind at any given moment and end her life. It's the future they're both facing.

Eszter's eyes check the window and the deepening shadows outside. Sunset can't be far, and that makes Dora shiver.

"There's not much time to explain everything, but if you just do what he says, life will be a lot easier," Eszter hurries to tell Dora. "Just keep your head down and don't cause any mayhem, and he'll leave you alone most of the time."

"And how can you be so sure?" Dora asks pointedly.

"Believe me, you don't want to anger him," Eszter says seriously and stares at her with big eyes. "Just… Don't argue back. I can reason with him a little, but I'm not capable of miracles."

"And what if I do?" Dora demands. Eszter simply blinks.

"Then he'll make an example out of you, or kill you, or both."

It's an uncomfortable truth, but Dora knows it's better to hear it earlier rather than later. The world she used to know is gone and the sooner she realises it the better their chances of survival are. Back when she travelled Europe with her father they were aware of the danger, but never this close to it.

Eszter's eyes dart to the window to follow the path of the setting sun. She seems to be calculating the time they have left.

"He'll most likely make you work on cataloguing the library or sorting through it," Eszter says quietly and looks at Dora again. "It's not unpleasant work, all considered. Matteo and Florence are all right and will help you just if it isn't against his orders. There are others, too, but they come and go. Matteo and Florence are here most of the time."

"Are they undead?" the other girl in the room asks. Eszter considers her for a moment.

"They are," Eszter answers calmly, "but not as bad as some of them."

The light is fading quicker now. Dora looks at the window with dread on her face, but Eszter simply rounds her shoulders and smooths down the blanket in her lap. Sunset is not far away. There are only mere minutes left until the night falls and she must face the monster they wished to slay back in the Pyrenees.

"Where are we?" Dora asks as the last rays of light reach over the mountains. Eszter shrugs.

"Probably in Austria, but I'm not entirely sure," she answers. "Might be Switzerland or Germany for all I know. Not Hungary, though, that I know for sure."

Eszter's head is turned a little and she seems to be listening for something. Dora wraps her arms around her. Her eyes dart towards the shadowy corridor leaving away from the small room. She knows she cannot beat the vampires neither in strength nor in speed.

A creak of metal breaks the silence of the common room. Dora's fingers dig deep into her own flesh as she waits nervously for what is to come. She pays no mind to Eszter, who pulls the blanket from her lap and starts folding it up. Someone steps out of the shadows of the corridor and a woman with a surprisingly kind face and glasses is revealed. Eszter looks over her shoulder and nods her head.

"Have you come to scare her to death?" Eszter asks. The woman laughs. Her gaping mouth reveals protruding teeth at the corners of her mouth.

"Of course, dear," the woman, Florence most likely, answers. "It's not like Vlad had enough trouble getting her here."

"Fair enough," Eszter replies and reaches underneath the sofa. Dora stares at the crutches Eszter pulls from there and the heavy leather straps of the leg brace. Eszter rises surprisingly smoothly and steps closer to Florence with her weight supported by the crutches.

"Are you hungry?" Florence asks them while giving Dora a careful view over. Eszter has already gotten halfway to the door and stopped to give them an expecting look.

"No point in trying to hide here," Eszter reminds and turns around. Her crutches clang on the stone floor while she limps ahead.

Dora follows uncertainly. Eszter talks quietly with Florence, who fits her steps to Eszter's.

The hallway ends with an iron gate that Florence opens with a key from a ring tied to her belt. Once all of them have passed the gate, Florence locks it once more and leads them to the closest door to the gate on that side. It opens to reveal a warm kitchen with a view to the other side of the mountains, a small yard with another closed gate and a road that curves away from sight. Dora considers what she sees as she hurries to help Eszter with the food.

Dinner is made quickly with three pairs of hands and soon enough they are sat around the ancient wooden table. Florence sits at the end with her eyes glued into a newspaper. The woman seems to pay them no mind, but they both know better than to speak freely in her presence.

Once Eszter has eaten her dinner, Florence rises and opens a locked cupboard. She gives Eszter a small basket with all kinds of medications. Eszter quickly picks some and downs a few pills with a swig of water and a nod of head to Florence, who is already locking the medicine cabinet. Dora finishes her meal soon after that.

"Leave the dishes," Florence says. "He wants to speak with you."

Dora gives Eszter a worried look, but the latter rises calmly enough. Her uneven steps lead them to large double doors. Eszter pushes them open and reveals the most beautiful library Dora has ever seen. Her eyes roam the shelves nearest to the door and take in the thousands of books they can see just from that spot.

Eszter gives her a one, final look before nodding her head towards one of the aisles of the library. Dora bites her lip with her eyes darting between the shelves. Only the clunking of Eszter's crutches can be heard in the eerily quiet room. They follow the aisle until the very end and discover a small reading nook hidden between the shelves and a window with a lone figure staring at the magnificent view. His rigid back and high-held head paint an image old as time when he finally turns and inspects them with eyes that are blazing on a waxy face. Dora is rendered speechless in front of such a figure.

"Welcome to my library," the man, the monster says and gestures his hand towards the comfortable seats. After a small moment of hesitation, Dora sits down on the same sofa as Eszter, scooting nearer to the woman than before.

They can hardly do anything else than stare at him. He stands before their eyes calm and collected with a small, arrogant twitch of a smile on his ruby red lips. He regards them with a victorious look on his eyes and they know, they just know that he has already planned their faiths.

"What do you want with me?" Dora asks with the slightest tremble in her voice. The man regards his descendant with cool interest.

"It is not every day one comes across historians as accomplished as you," he says, amusement shining through his voice. "I always did want someone like you to curate my collection. Curiosity, ambition, and adventurousness are admirable qualities for my librarians."

"What makes you think I'd do anything you want?" Dora asks, but there is no real strength behind the question. Dora is shaking in front of the monster that she has never truly felt that threatened by before, not even when he watched her conversing with her father in the bright sunlight.

Dracula doesn't answer. The dark look in his eyes is enough for her to nervously lower her eyes and huddle closer to Eszter.

"You will learn the rules soon enough," he simply remarks. "For now, you will work underneath Eszter. She will tell you what to do, and if you know what is best for you, you will obey." The threat is given with a voice that doesn't even reach for the man's darker qualities. Instead he gives them a soul-piercing look before walking away from the reading nook.

Dora's hands shake as she covers her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

* * *

The large table is laid with many books, rolls, and manuscripts. Dora looks at them for a moment before straightening her back and glancing at Eszter.

"You can start with helping me catalogue all these," Eszter says and pulls up a book from a pile near her. She opens the cover and shows the thick paper laid between the first pages. "The most important thing at this stage is to note out the title, the author, the condition of the manuscript, the main language of the text, and the approximate year it was produced," she tells. "Matteo and Florence will collect these books for restoration, and once that process is done, I'll add index cards to the archive. At that stage the manuscripts will be shelved, and the processing of the next batch begins."

"The next batch?" Dora asks while taking a seat around the table. Eszter smiles a bit.

"Vlad's moving all his libraries and collections here," Eszter says. "Bulgaria was just the beginning, really. Largest and most valuable, for sure, but nonetheless a beginning."

Dora's brow furrows at those words. She carefully looks at Eszter and considers the girl for a long while.

"Are you his main librarian?"

Eszter blinks her eyes. Her mouth opens the tiniest amount. She seems like she's never considered such a thing before and looks like she's about to deny the accusation, but then seems to change her mind.

"I'm not actually sure," Eszter muses. "I guess I kind of am. It's not like I have much power over what is acquired or in which order, but I do know this place like the backs of my hands."

Dora nods her head and seems satisfied with Eszter's answer. The latter returns to work and continues with finishing the next card for the manuscript before her. The other human follows her example after a while and starts working on the other manuscripts before them both.

At some point Florence stops by and lays the already sorted texts onto a cart. She peeks over Eszter's shoulder at the roll under scrutiny and frowns.

"That's in much worse shape than the usual," Florence says. Eszter sighs.

"These are all pretty bad," she tells. "You and Matteo have a lot of work in your hands."

Florence nods her head and collects the rest of the texts to the cart before wheeling it into some other part of the library.

Eszter pushes a stray hair behind an ear and finally notes Dora's staring.

"Can two people really work through all these by themselves?" Dora asks curiously. Eszter shakes her head.

"That's where the others come in," she tells. "Sometimes there are many more working on a particularly bad batch, but they've taught me enough that I can repair some small damages on my own. I guess they'll train you with that, too."

Eszter seems calm about the fact that Dora will be staying there. The latter privately guesses that Eszter has probably seen many people passing through the library throughout the years she's been there and has gotten used to it, as morbid as it sounds.

"How long exactly have you been here for?" Dora asks slowly. Eszter thinks about it for a while. That is stomach-turning enough in itself.

"Nine years," comes the answer.

"And how old are you now?" Dora probes. Eszter straightens her back.

"Twenty-four this autumn," she says slowly, as if unsure what the question is asked for. No wonder Eszter seems so used to it all; she's been there for such a long time that she probably doesn't even think about life outside anymore.

"And he's kept you human for all that time," the girl says quietly. Eszter looks at her with just a hint of understanding shining through her eyes.

"He doesn't like turning people that are too young," Eszter almost murmurs. "It's better to wait a while for everything to even out. Turning someone that's too volatile is a recipe for disaster."

Dora's face is white as a sheet as she nods her head. Hearing that she might not be hurt for a while is a relief.

They return to their work hearts a little lighter and less filled with fear. Eszter's pace is much quicker than Dora's, but with them both working together, it only takes a few hours to sort through all the books. At that point a strange man, most likely Matteo, arrives and starts collecting the texts onto another cart.

"Take the rest of the night off," Matteo instructs. Eszter looks doubtful.

"Are you sure?" she confirms. Matteo nods his head.

"We'll start the lessons in conservation and restoration tomorrow," Matteo says and looks curiously at the newest addition to the library. "Work will be much faster with an additional pair of hands, even if she is still unfamiliar with our practices."

Eszter nods her head and gathers her crutches that have been leaning on a half-filled bookshelf. She looks at Dora expectantly and eventually leads her out of the library. Dora seems to relax somewhat after the large wooden doors have been closed and all the thousands and thousands of books no longer can be seen nor smelled.

"Guess I'll show you around," Eszter murmurs to herself and starts limping away from the library doors. A constant stream of speech keeps them company as she names the various rooms and tells Dora about the place. Apparently, the eastern wing is off limits to the humans, but since Eszter doesn't seem that bothered about it, Dora gathers that the vampires roam there.

Eventually they end up at the front door, which surprisingly enough opens into the cool night. Eszter leans on the wall and looks towards the windy road that curls around a bend just a few dozen steps from the door.

"It's about an hour of driving to the nearest town, so I can't say I'd recommend escaping on foot. The village is closer, but you do not want to go there," Eszter states calmly enough. Dora gives an odd look to the woman whose hair billows a bit in the cool wind. "There's a path that begins around the second bend, but I have no clue where that leads to. The village has his minions all around, so the path would still be the better option, if you want to try."

"And you don't want to?" Dora asks Eszter quietly. The young woman frowns and shakes her head silently.

"I've already made my tries, and it's not like I walk that fast," Eszter murmurs and turns to go back inside. "He doesn't mind if we step outside, but it's better not to leave the perimeter."

Dora looks curiously at Eszter and considers her leg for a moment.

"What happened?" she eventually asks. Eszter looks confused for a moment, but then she notices what Dora has been staring at.

"Polio."

Eszter returns inside but leaves the door open. Dora's frown deepens as she wonders if it is a good idea to try. They're probably keeping an eye on her, and she doubts she'll make it far, but staying there is a risk. She considers the pros and cons of trying to run. Eszter doesn't seem that keen on escaping, but then again, it would be exceedingly difficult for her to even try leaving.

Dora thinks about Bartholomew Rossi, her grandfather, and the letters he left behind in Sveti Giorgi. She thinks about her mother's father's desperate attempts at finding some hidden door or a way out of the library in Bulgaria. She now has the path ahead of her, a tempting path with sweet freedom ahead, but she shakes her head quietly.

"He could find me even if I did manage to get away," Dora murmurs to herself, but her eyes are scanning the mountainside and measuring the fall downwards. She steps away from the door and cranes her neck to see where the road would lead to.

The open door paints the courtyard in soft, yellow light which fades quickly and gives way to the darkness of night. The stars are bright there. It only highlights the fact that they are so far away from other people that it would be almost impossible to make it out alive.

The path isn't that far away. Dora swallows heavily.

She wishes, wishes so dearly, that she hadn't followed her father into the belly of the beast, that she would've just stayed home and been satisfied with waiting. It might have bought her time, but maybe it wouldn't have made that big of a difference in the end. After all, Eszter only got taken because Dracula wanted to control her mother.

Dora looks at the road leading away from the house, and in the end, she hurries towards the gate and starts running the moment it opens.


	2. Chapter 2

"Dora has escaped," Vlad announces when he sits down on the chair opposite to Eszter's. She simply hums and turns the page, brow in a deep furrow. Eszter scribbles down a quick line on the card and then raises her eyes to the man before her.

"Of course she escaped," she answers. "She's not exactly happy to be here. Better to get it out of her systems now rather than later, right?"

Vlad doesn't answer her, but Eszter is already used to it. She returns to her book and tries to catch the thought that has almost disappeared. Eszter taps her bottom lip with the pencil in her hand and then continues her notes on the book. Vlad follows it for a long moment without any movement on his part. Eszter tries to not get bothered by it, but eventually her concentration wears thin and she pushes the wad of paper away and gives Vlad her full attention.

"Quite odd that she tried the path," Vlad comments dryly. "I wonder if you had anything to do with that."

His bright green eyes catch hers for a moment. Eszter shrugs and doesn't pretend she had nothing to do with it. That would be pointless. Vlad already knows her well enough, and on top of that, it's not like he can't just peek in her mind once she's asleep.

"Why her?" Eszter asks finally. She has wondered that ever since Vlad left Dora in the western wing and locked the door behind himself. She knows that Vlad had kept an eye on Dora's parents for a while already, but the daughter came as a surprise even to Matteo and Florence based on their reactions. Vlad takes in only the best, and only the best of the best ever see his library. The rest are more... disposable. They can do all his dirty work while the ones at the library are much harder to replace.

Eszter wonders if the family will be brought together ever again. She can't quite believe that they'd be allowed to stay together. It's more likely that they'll be turned one at a time and taken away, or that at least one of them will end up losing their life. Eszter has seen so many lose their lives throughout the years that she no longer longs for miracles.

"I've been keeping my eye on Paul and Helen ever since I moved the library away from Bulgaria," Vlad answers. "They stopped looking for me after that but resumed the chase some months back. They even brought their daughter into it."

Eszter's been there long enough to know that Vlad is more amused than angry about them stopping the chase before being taken in. Those who are let go usually return at some point. They forget all the danger and fear once enough years have passed and start thinking that maybe, just maybe, they could be the exception. Of course, that never happens. Once someone is taken in, they either get turned or they get killed. There have never been any exceptions, and there never will be. They all think that they can change the world, either become the librarian or slay the dragon, but in the end, so few end up being remarkable at all. In the nine years she's been there, Eszter has met countless people that have only passed by. Some have been honoured with an invite to return, but most often they never come back.

"Seems to be a common enough problem," Eszter murmurs. She remembers all the long nights her mother used to spend at her desk. She never did realise Eszter sneaking up to the door and peeking in through the crack. Eszter never saw the papers that clearly, but she could hear her mother mumbling to herself every now and then.

Vlad quirks an eyebrow and gives her an expectant look. Eszter sighs and pushes a stray hair back behind her ear. It's not easy being stared straight at by the kind of man Vlad is. There are always hundreds of thoughts behind the eyes that betray nothing. There is always more going on than what can be guessed.

"You're getting older," Vlad notes in a bored tone. Eszter lowers her eyes and tries not to show the conflicted thoughts that rise to the surface, but Vlad simply is too good at reading her. The man hums to himself. "In fact, you are starting to be old enough to turn."

"And am I?" Eszter asks without raising her eyes. It's best not to argue back, but she can't help but wonder about her future. It's easy enough to lose track of days and months when all the days seem to repeat the same old pattern, but Eszter hasn't lost count of the years. She knows she's getting older, more mature, with every passing day closer to the end of her life.

Vlad is quiet for a long while and considers the question in peace. Eszter would like nothing more than to just get a quick peek at his thoughts, but she knows that doing so would leave her vulnerable. It's better to stay calm and collected, better not to show the anxiety in her eyes if she can just avoid it.

She's worried for Dora and the punishment Vlad will give her. She's worried about what Vlad plans to do with the family, what trials they'll be pushed through. Moreover, she's worried about the young daughter who has no idea of the world she's been pushed into. Eszter just wishes she could help the poor girl some way, hopes that she could change something and make it easier to her, but she knows that she can't. Life there is hard enough as it is. Eszter is not nearly brave enough to help anyone else, knows that there's nothing she can really do. That's why she must accept the future, must accept that they might get hurt, that they might get broken, that they might even die.

She just wishes that Vlad would give her the answer, just this once, because it would be better to know than be stuck in that limbo.

"Not quite yet," he murmurs eventually. Eszter can feel the weight of his eyes on her skin and she swallows, buries all her thoughts, and finally raises her eyes.

"Are you ever really planning on that?" Eszter asks. She's been wondering about that for quite some time already, has been thinking about all the unsaid words that have filled her world throughout the years. Vlad never has to tell her to do anything, because she knows better than to play stupid around him. He doesn't need to say what he wants since Eszter can read between the lines and fulfil his wishes before he even has to look at her in a meaningful manner.

"Why would I have kept you here if I weren't planning on it?" Vlad shoots back. Eszter shrugs.

"To keep my mother in line, or to see if I was worth to effort, or just out of sadistic curiosity," she suggests. The words make a rare smile rise on Vlad's thin lips. The man has a twisted sense of humour underneath the cool and collected surface. Few people have ever seen it, but then again, Vlad is most relaxed in his library.

Eszter's eyes travel through all the books around her usual study nook. They all prefer different bookshelves, all have their favourite spots in the library. Here the shelves are so tall they almost reach the ceiling high above. That makes the surrounding area feel somewhat more comforting, safer, and secure. It's an insane idea in a place like this and Eszter acknowledges that, but at least she can pretend on those lazy afternoon hours she has for herself, those hours that no one else seems to bother her and she can forget that she's been a prisoner in that place for nine years. Every passing day means that her memories fade, are replaced by imitations that aren't quite right. She's forgotten so many names and faces throughout the years, forgotten so many details about her old life that it almost feels like a distant dream.

Sometimes she wakes up and thinks that it's all make-believe and she's never actually left the mountain. Sometimes she closes her eyes and tries to think about her parents' wedding photograph on their living room wall or what her best friend's voice used to sound like, and she can't recollect any of that. Everything's faded, distorted, wrong.

Living there has already made her into someone else, someone different, even if her body is physically still almost the same.

"Or perhaps I think that you're a very odd person, Eszter, and want to know just what you'll end up becoming like," Vlad drawls lazily. Eszter's brow furrows as she considers the man in front of her and wonders what Vlad is even talking about. She's not really that odd, is she?

"What do you mean?" Eszter questions even though she's not entirely sure whether it's a good idea. Vlad hums and leans just a little back on his chair, relaxes his demeanour just the barest amount.

"There have been many that I've taken in through the years. Most people either never run away, the opposite in fact, or they run as soon as they can. You keep us guessing. Most wouldn't have the patience to wait a year for their first attempt."

Eszter snorts as she hears that.

"Most people don't have a bad leg and enough sense to figure out how to break into the garage and hot-wire a car," she replies. She did get quite far before crashing the car, but even so, her first escape attempt did get her closer to freedom than many others ever reached.

Her mother had paid for that attempt, but still Eszter had tried. She didn't stop until after the third attempt and her mother's death. Eszter will probably never try running again. She's had to pay the price three times already, has already used up her best plans. Any further attempts would only be madness, and if she truly becomes desperate enough to try those plans, she might as well just throw herself off the mountain. Sometimes she wonders if it would be better to die instead of letting herself become something else. Throughout the years, some decided it wasn't worth it, and so they took matters into their own hands.

The thought still sends shivers down her spine. Eszter can't really understand that kind of desperation, but she does also know that Vlad has been kinder to her than to others. After all, she has kept her head down and thoughts to herself for all these years.

"You wouldn't really find me interesting if you didn't take me in to reign my mother," Eszter ends up muttering eventually. Vlad narrows his eyes.

"You have the spark that all the others have," he replies to her. "I think you would have become a person of interest eventually. Not many have the patience for cataloguing or reorganising, and especially not for restoration and conservation. Besides, it's always beneficial to keep an eye on whole families rather than just the odd person. These tendencies to tend to get passed along the blood."

Eszter frowns and thinks about it for a while. The library is quiet now that Matteo and Florence are following Dora's footsteps. It's just her and Vlad in that big house even if the others are nearby, especially on a night like this when his other vassals are out there trying to find Dora. No doubt she will be brought back before sunrise and the change that always seems to bring. She was too hurried, too unprepared to truly get away further than the nearest village or the forests that grow in the surrounding valleys.

Eventually Eszter decides that she can't keep her thoughts together well enough to focus on her studies, so she collects all her writing utensils together and sets everything nice and clean, ready for a later time. Vlad follows her work quietly, seemingly not caring whether she stays or leaves. He does, however, get up as she does and waits for her to take her crutches and take the first step. It's like it always is: Eszter can say what she wants or read all the books she cares for, but in the end, Vlad has the power to decide whether she should have the chance to be alone or not.

"Will you punish her for tonight's attempt?" Eszter asks even though she's almost certain that he will confirm her thoughts. Vlad raises an eyebrow.

"How else would she learn?" he throws the question back. Eszter sighs and decides not to argue back. Vlad does know what he does. He never breaks someone in the first weeks. They may get cracked, bruised, and beaten, but never truly broken. That happens much later in the game. Sometimes it happens almost like an accident, but other times the man does it to satisfy his blood-thirsty streak. It can't really be helped. Changing Vlad's mind is like trying to not think about anything.

"What do you consider an appropriate punishment?" Vlad asks her with calculating eyes. Eszter quickly glances at the man and swallows thickly.

"I'm not the one to decide that, so I don't see why my opinion should matter," she murmurs. Vlad's deep chuckling makes her hair stand up on end.

"Haven't you been here long enough to understand what I'm expecting of you?" Vlad says lightly, but Eszter is well aware of the threat lying underneath the cool and collected surface. She shivers involuntarily and quickly glances at the man while thinking about the punishment that would be appropriate. If it's too easy on Dora, Vlad will just punish her alongside the girl, but if it's too harsh, Dora will turn against her. There really is no way to win in such a situation, and Eszter can only sigh as she realises what she'll have to do.

"Well, the way you punished me after the first escape attempt would certainly be effective," Eszter says quietly. Vlad smiles, and if that isn't one of the most horrible things she has seen during her short life, she doesn't know what would be.

"Poetic justice," Vlad says calmly and nods his head, and the matter is decided as simply as that. Eszter stares at the cold floor ahead and shivers as she hears the front door opening. Vlad keeps to her rhythm instead of stepping ahead to face the escaped prisoner. There is an unreadable look upon his face, but since Eszter has gotten used to that already, it doesn't strike her as alarming.

Matteo meets them halfway through the hallway. He glances at Eszter, who easily enough limps away and lets the vassal report to his master. She's not supposed to be aware of all the things going on around the house. After all, she's only a human in a world filled with the living dead.

The iron gate to the western wing is open just a hunch. Eszter doesn't close it after her but leaves it the same way she found it. She listens for a moment and concludes that no, Matteo hasn't brought anyone with him. The thought both unnerves and relaxes her; if Dora isn't here, she is still outside, and Matteo has returned alone, possibly facing a punishment of his own for that, but then again, she'll have some peace of mind for herself.

Eszter slips into the bathroom, closes the simple hook of the door that acts as the only lock, and starts filling up a bathtub. She glances at the window and calculates the time from that but can't be entirely sure if morning is an hour or two away. In the end, it shouldn't make any difference, she decides and shakes her head.

The water is wonderfully warm as she slowly slips herself into the tub. The heat makes her leg tingle a little, and she leans over to rub the sore muscles with the experience only repetition can bring. It's been getting better lately with all the rubs and warm baths and stretches. However, Eszter knows better than to dream of running with her own legs, think about walking without her crutches. They'll most likely be a part of her for a long time, maybe for an eternity.

Eszter doesn't know if becoming a vampire will heal her. She hasn't dared ask anyone for fear of letting it all happen without fighting back if that would mean getting her legs back. Sometimes she thinks back to the lazy summers of her childhood when she used to run in the fields surrounding their house, the time before all that was taken away.

The fragile, twisted leg is hers and has been for years now. Eszter has already accepted it, but that doesn't mean she doesn't miss being healthy and not having aching shoulders and arms from dragging herself around.

The water cools down eventually and Eszter slowly washes her skin, cleans all the worries and dirt of the past day. Ever since she was woken at the edge of dawn and told to keep an eye on their new guest, her brain has been running through all the possibilities and changes another person will bring to her world. Now that she finally has a moment just for herself, she doesn't want to go back and return to all the worries. Perhaps she can slip away and fall asleep before anyone comes running for her. Heaven knows she's been awake long enough with far too little sleep.

Eszter dries her body with a worn towel and wraps herself into a soft bathrobe. She stops in front of the mirror just long enough to detangle her hair, and then she flips open the fragile lock and leaves the bathroom. No one is in the common room, so she hurries across it into her own room and closes the door behind her. It won't stop them, not really, but they know to at least knock before entering.

Eszter changes into her pyjamas, hangs the bathrobe to dry on the hook on her door, and slips underneath the covers. The curtains still cover the window. Morning will break soon and others than just her will fall asleep as well. Eszter stares at the ceiling and tries to let her mind wander, tries not to care about anything, but all her thoughts want to cover is Dora's fate.

There is a single knock on the door when Eszter is just on the brink of consciousness and sleep. She opens her eyes blearily and looks at the figure standing between the light of the common room and the darkness of her room. It takes a moment to recognise Vlad.

"You'll be locked here for the day," the man informs her and then the door closes. Eszter closes her eyes as if they were never open and slips into dreams where that world has not yet seeped into, a world where things are different and there are so many others, a world where she walks without crutches and the pain doesn't constantly nag at the back of her mind.

Her breaths are even as Vlad studies her face as she sleeps.

* * *

 

Eszter wakes slowly and knows, just knows that someone is in the room with her. She keeps her breaths even, doesn't move even the slightest bit, but she stretches her ears and tries to catch any sound made by the other person. It is deadly silent, but then there is a slight movement and Eszter knows that they sit on the chair next to the wardrobe, watching her from there.

Eszter steals a quick look through lowered lashes and sees the young, still innocent girl sitting in the chair. The curtains have been cracked just enough that light shines in, and Eszter can see bruises on Dora's face.

"It's not very nice to watch someone sleep," Eszter says with her eyes still closed and the girl flinches violently. Eszter finally opens her eyes properly and slowly sits up. A quick glance at the light tells its maybe midday, perhaps early afternoon.

"I'm sorry," the girl mutters and wrings her hands nervously. "I didn't know who else to talk to."

Eszter nods her head and rubs her eyes in an attempt to wake up fully. The other girl's lips are thin and she looks like she hasn't slept at all. It wouldn't surprise Eszter.

"Do you know what's going to happen to me?" the girl asks almost desperately. Eszter shakes her head.

"Uncertainty is part of the punishment," Eszter explains. The girl's brow furrows. "I suggested the same punishment I received for my first escape attempt."

The girl swallows thickly.

"But what now?" she asks. "What will they do to me?"

Eszter pats the bed next to her. After a moment of hesitation, Dora comes sit next to her. Eszter doesn't look at her but at her own hands.

"He'll keep you hungry, and if my suspicions are correct, he'll keep a close eye on your family, maybe even has them already," Eszter tells. "Separation and the lack of knowledge are the worst parts of it. He won't let you starve to death, because that would be counterintuitive, but you'll stay hungry as long as he feels like you've learned the lesson or until he feels like he's broken you enough."

Dora looks almost scared. Eszter finally gives into the temptation and studies her face properly. The eyes are afraid, but there's something oddly familiar about the face. Eszter can't quite place it.

"How long did it last for you?" she eventually asks. Eszter sighs.

"It doesn't really matter either way," she murmurs. "You can never trust what was previously right. Everything changes by the day."

Silence covers the room. Eszter starts working on her leg and rubs the aching muscles and tightened tendons. She eventually bends over and forces the ankle into the correct position. Without letting go, she pulls the brace closer with her other hand and starts strapping her leg in. The other girl follows it studiously.

They stare at each other in silent understanding, but eventually Eszter turns and lowers her legs on the floor before taking her crutches and raising herself up on them. Dora looks at it and stays quiet as Eszter slowly makes her way to the wardrobe and picks only a long cardigan over her pyjamas.

"I'm scared," Dora admits. Eszter gives her a quick smile.

"Me too," she simply answers.

The common room is bright with all the light shining in. Just sitting there seems to relax Dora until she is drowsy. Eszter sits opposite her and watches until her eyes finally droop closed and she falls asleep.

Eszter knows this peace is only temporary. Once night falls, Dora will be thrust back into that other world and she'll have to survive in it all by herself. Eszter guesses that the thought of losing her parents probably never crossed the young girl's mind once she decided to run, but Dora is still young and has never faced a world like that before.

She'll learn the rules sooner or later. They all do.

The day passes with short naps to help ease the restlessness and tiredness of the long hours of the previous day. Dora's sleep is deep and she isn't disturbed by much, but Eszter doesn't move from her place. It would feel wrong to leave the girl all alone in the common room.

Eszter is the only one awake when Vlad steps in and lets his eyes rest on the two young women. Eszter nods her head slightly at him in a silent greeting, and he seems to nod his own just the barest hint in answer before his eyes take in the sleeping girl. Vlad doesn't say anything or look at them for long before he turns around and leaves. Eszter has been there long enough to know that the gate is now open and it's time to go to the library and begin her nightly work.

Dora snaps awake when Eszter's crutches clank against the stone floor. She looks scared for a moment.

"We're expected in the library," Eszter says quietly. Dora nods her head and gets up slowly. Eszter slips into her room for a quick change of clothes and returns to see Dora looking uncertainly at the room she was put into previously.

"It's as good as your room now," Eszter tells her. Dora nods her head and swallows loudly before stepping in hesitantly. Eszter limps away into the kitchen and looks at the already set table. There are two meals, although one of them can hardly be called that.

When Dora finally arrives, her eyes stop at the food set out for her. Eszter works on her own food and swallows every crumb without even glancing at Dora's bare plate. It's no good trying to defy Vlad now. It would only get them both into trouble.

Once they've eaten, they enter the library. Dora stares at the long shelves and seems to be overwhelmed for a moment, but since Eszter doesn't stop, she quickly follows her.

"Do you work here every night?" Dora asks. Eszter shrugs.

"Most nights."

The answer seems to be enough for Dora. Like the previous night, they get into a rhythm and make quick work through the large pile of books. Eszter can hear when Dora's stomach starts rumbling, but the girl keeps on a straight face and acts like nothing is wrong. They progress a little slower than the night before, but still make a very admirable dent into the remaining manuscripts.

Dora doesn't notice Matteo stopping by, that focused she is with the work. The man takes a look at all the sorted manuscripts and then moves into Dora's line of sight. Eszter doesn't let the man's presence bother her, but instead finishes cataloguing the current book in her hands.

"We'll be leaving in an hour," Matteo tells her. Eszter frowns.

"All of you?" she confirms. Dora is not nearly as subtle as she pretends to be, but Matteo pays it no mind. He simply hums and starts moving the manuscripts into a cart.

"You know how it is," he murmurs and glances at Eszter with his eyes filled with a thousand unspoken words. Eszter doesn't let the blush rise on her cheeks as it once did when Matteo stared at her like that, but instead nods her head calm and collected. Matteo raises a brow, but he seems at least to be pleased. The man has always preferred a challenge.

Perhaps Eszter should start keeping Dora in her line of sight and within hearing-range to make sure Matteo won't eat her alive.

Matteo comes closer, almost uncomfortably close. Eszter picks up another book and starts working on it even when his fingers trace her neck and feel her pulse beating deliciously underneath her skin. He smiles and stares intently at her.

"An hour is such a long time," he murmurs, voice filthy with unspoken suggestions and proposals. Eszter can't quite stop herself from swallowing thickly. "Who knows what could happen?"

His hand settles on her shoulder. Eszter shakes it off.

"I'm busy," she says harshly and glances at Matteo. He just laughs and bends closer. Eszter can feel his breath in her hair and on her face. The smell of death permeates the air close to him. Eszter lowers her eyes and stares at her shaking hands.

"I said I was busy," she enunciates as clearly as she can. Matteo still doesn't leave.

"Busy is not a no," Matteo reminds her softly and lets his fingers travel on her back. Eszter takes in a breath and prepares to tell him off, but she never gets the chance.

"Matteo."

The name is said coolly. Matteo whips away from Eszter quicker than should be possible and gives all his attention to his master who stares at them with an unreadable face. Eszter only glances at Vlad before letting the air out of her lungs in silent relief. She picks up her pen again and shakily finishes the line of writing while the men are locked in a battle of gazes. Matteo loses, as can be expected, and slinks off.

The tension doesn't leave the air. Vlad keeps standing there and staring at her back, but Eszter tries her very best to act like it's not bothering her.

"Has he been bothering you for long?" Vlad asks. Eszter pushes the hair back from her face with her free hand and licks her lips.

"I had it under control," she says petulantly even though she knows it's not the answer he is after. Vlad stares at her, but eventually he turns around and leaves them to their work.

Dora is clearly bursting at the seams, but she controls herself long enough for Florence to lead them back into the western wing. Only there and only once they've been alone for ten long minutes does she let her questions run wild.

"What was that?" Dora demands. Eszter crosses her arms on her chest and tries to calm her trembling heart.

"I'd tell you if I knew," is Eszter's only answer. Dora stares at her intently, and for a moment Eszter is afraid that the young girl won't believe her, but eventually she sighs and shakes her head.

"I feel like they're playing games with our minds," Dora says and sounds more tired than anyone of her age should be. Eszter closes her eyes for a moment.

"It certainly wouldn't be the first time," she sighs and opens her eyes. Dora looks uncertain and seems to be wondering if there is something they could do, something they could try to change their situation, but neither can really figure out what that scene in the library was about.

Not for the first time Eszter wishes she was brave enough to just ask, but she knows there are things she hasn't learned that would change her from who she is now, and she's scared out of her mind of that. She doesn't want to become someone different, doesn't want to lose herself, but with every passing day she is closer to her own death.

One day she'll be turned and after that day she might become someone else. Eszter doesn't know how it would change her, doesn't know how immortality would affect her, and that is perhaps the worst thing about it.


	3. Chapter 3

The days pass quickly yet they drag on. With every sunrise Dora's defiance crumbles and with every sunset Eszter becomes more and more worried about the girl. Dora handles the hunger admirably, but Eszter can see the cracks forming on the otherwise stony surface. The punishment is taking its toll and it hasn't even been that long yet.

Ever since that scene in the library Matteo has been avoiding Eszter. She doesn't really understand why, but since Vlad seems to be keeping a careful eye on the girls, it has something to do with the master of the house. He's not outright with it; Dora at least hasn't noticed how the man keeps just out of eyesight and within hearing distance. It's not necessary in any case. They don't really talk when they're working since their conversations are usually reserved for daylight hours, yet he persists.

"Do you recognise this language?" Dora asks one day. It's not the most unusual question. Dora has some experience with languages since Paul made sure his daughter was well-educated, but the library's collection is so vast that only Vlad may be able to read everything belonging to it.

Eszter takes a good look at it and frowns. She carefully traces the words with her finger and mumbles them in her mouth. Her accent is probably way off the mark but speaking the words aloud lets her have some idea of what the language might be.

"I _think_ it's vulgar Latin. It doesn't read like classical Latin, but I can't place it better than that. Matteo probably knows the specifics. He and Florence add their own comments and corrections before I write down the archive notes," Eszter speaks slowly while racking through her brain. The language seems oddly familiar, yet her brain can't quite catch the thought.

"It's early Romanian," a voice says behind her. Eszter jumps a little. Vlad is next to her and looks at the manuscript with a slight wrinkle in his brow, but once Eszter is done with her surprise, the wrinkle disappears. Dora seems equally scared of his sudden appearance but hasn't reacted quite as violently.

"Right. Thanks," Dora mutters and writes the language down on the notecard. Eszter shakes her head and returns to the few remaining books waiting on that table.

"I believe it is time for you to start studying conservation and restoration," Vlad notes calmly while looking at Dora's direction. The girl looks surprised for a moment that the man has acknowledged her, but she quickly nods her head and looks uncertainly at the remaining pile of manuscripts. Eszter quickly shakes her hand in a shooing motion.

"I can handle the rest," she reassures Dora, who nods again and rises. The other girl gathers the manuscripts that have already been sorted and quickly makes her way into the other parts of the library with them in her arms. Eszter follows her for as long as she can, and then she gives a curious look at Vlad. The man stands tall amongst all the shelves and books looking like he knows the contents of each manuscript. Eszter keeps waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"What do you think of her?" Vlad asks her. Eszter frowns as the man sits down. His face betrays neither emotion nor any thought.

"I think she's adjusting better than could be expected," Eszter says quietly even though she knows there's no need for that. She can feel the heaviness of the air which seems to dull all sensations. Vlad doesn't want this conversation to be heard by the others, and so he has made sure none of them can eavesdrop on it.

"And how is she faring with the punishment?" Vlad continues calmly. Eszter frowns and crosses out a word.

"Dora's being brave, but it's starting to take its toll," Eszter tells and wonders what Vlad is after. The man hums.

"You took much longer to break," he notes, "though I am yet uncertain if you ever were broken at all. Certainly not tamed, not in the least."

Eszter is lost. She has no idea why Vlad would say something like that. Is he planning on something? Does he want to see her broken and tamed, is this a warning of what's to come? Usually Eszter can guess, but now she has no idea why the man is talking to her.

"You haven't really tried to break me," Eszter mutters. Vlad raises an eyebrow.

"Haven't I?" the man asks. "Pain wouldn't break you, not like it would break others. You are far too used to ignoring it. And as for the subtler options, none have been successful so far. Isolation hasn't worked, and neither did boredom. Neither hunger, thirst, nor sleep deprivation has tamed you permanently. The only way to control you has been through your mother, and even that is gone now. Most bend under my will eventually, but you have kept your own and even bloomed here."

The facade of pretending to catalogue the manuscripts has been abandoned completely. Eszter can only stare at Vlad and wonder if the man has truly tried to tame her, and if so, why tell her. The man keeps staring at her with eyes half shadowed. There is something peculiar in his eyes, something Eszter has never seen before in them.

"Why tell me?" Eszter asks and tries to understand what Vlad's words really mean. The man inclines his head a little and gives her a rare smile. It lasts only for an image before disappearing. He seems atypically pleased with her.

"You have grown into a peculiar woman," Vlad answers and rises from his chair. "It is not often I am faced with something that awakens my curiosity."

Eszter can only stare at his back as the man disappears between the shelves. She's lost in the scene, lost in his words. Even after minutes have passed, she still stares at the spot where she could last see his back, but staring does not bring him back.

Why would Vlad say something like that to her? Why would the man be so utterly confusing, why would he leave without really saying anything yet throwing off her inner peace all the same? Eszter frowns and swallows, tries to collect herself, but she knows that it really isn't possible. She tries to return to her work, tries to finish the cataloguing, but her thoughts keep fleeing and she can barely write a single word without her hand shaking so badly the text become illegible. In the end she has only one option, and as she heads to sit outside on the low stone fence staring down into the valley, she can only think about Vlad's odd words.

Hours pass while she sits there quietly and tries to understand. She can feel the passing glances on her skin as they check that she hasn't left, but they don't approach her. Eszter needs the time, needs the noise of the howling winds and the cool night-time air on her skin.

Morning is fast approaching when Florence comes and doesn't leave. Eszter sits there for a few more seconds and then blinks slowly.

"You need to come back inside," Florence says. Eszter wonders if Florence knows something more than Eszter herself does, but she doesn't ask. Instead she collects her crutches and limps back inside.

Dora looks like she wishes to speak to her, but Eszter quickly heads to her own room and closes the door. She knows it hurts Dora's feelings, that the girl needs reassurance from somebody, but this morning is too stark and harsh. Eszter opens the curtains just enough to see how the sky lightens, just enough to see when the morning finally arrives.

She doesn't really know when she falls asleep. One moment she is sitting on her bed staring at that thin ray of light, and the next she blinks and sees only darkness. The curtains are closed, but the air in the room is still and even though she stretches her hearing, Eszter can't hear anything. Blearily she rubs at her eyes and lets the air out of her lungs.

The hours pass in a blur of fragmentary thoughts and barely formed ideas. Sleep doesn't abandon the room and Eszter doesn't have the energy to resist. All she knows is that she can hear someone on the other side of her door one moment, and the next it's quiet again.

Something changes. Knocking pulls her out of the blurred existence between sleep and consciousness. Eszter hums.

Someone enters the room. A cool hand touches her brow and feels the heat radiating from the body. The cold trail of the fingers lingers long after they are gone.

"You are burning up," Vlad notes and steps away from the bed. Just a moment later the curtains are pulled wide open to reveal a clear, starry sky.

"Probably shouldn't have sat outside all night," Eszter groans and tries to push herself up, but her arms are weak and barely have the strength to lift her body just an inch. Eszter frowns and tries another time with just as little success as the first time. Vlad raises an eyebrow.

"You are ill," he notes. The voice betrays that he is not exactly pleased with the fact, but since Eszter knows that the next batch of books won't arrive for almost two weeks and that they are ahead in the archiving process, there is really no hurry to return to work. No, something else in the situation has made Vlad displeased. Eszter tries to figure it out, but her head feels like it's been filled with wool and so she soon abandons the attempt.

"I'll be fine," Eszter murmurs as her eyes threaten to droop down. There is silence for just a moment, but then strong arms pull her up against a cold body and lift her off the bed. Eszter's muscles twitch involuntarily as she gives Vlad a disbelieving look, but the man ignores her as he carries her across the common room into the bathroom. She is unceremoniously lowered into the bathtub and the man twists the faucet. Cool water bursts onto her legs and make the cotton of the pyjamas cling to her skin.

Eszter narrows her eyes at the man who is calmly removing his rings and laying them down on the countertop in front of the mirror.

"I know where you sleep," Eszter threatens as the water starts to cover her legs. Vlad shakes his head quietly.

"One day I'll teach you how to deliver a proper threat," the man says and settles on the edge of the tub next to Eszter's upper body. She wraps her arms around her torso and stares at the man coldly while the cool water makes her shiver.

The moment is stretched thin before Eszter finally lowers her eyes with an unhappy look on her face and brings her hands to her hair. In a few quick seconds the coil of copper hair is let out of the messy plait it's been gathered in for the day.

"You must be quite ill indeed since you've given in this easily," Vlad muses. Eszter harrumphs but doesn't give any other answer. The man calmly collects her hair into his hands and starts washing it while Eszter stares at the wall and lets her thoughts move in lazy circles.

Vlad's touch is even colder than usual, but the sensation isn't altogether unpleasant. Drowsiness soon takes over Eszter's body and without even noticing it, she leans on the edge of the bathtub and lets her eyes fall closed with the man's hands still dangerously close to her throat and pulse. Her eyes flutter open only when she feels the hands touching the buttons of the shirt.

"If you even try to do what I think you're doing, you've got another thing coming," Eszter mutters tiredly and jerks away from his touch. Vlad chuckles.

"Do you honestly think I haven't seen bodies throughout my years?" the man notes amusedly. Eszter tries to glare at the man, but the fever takes the edge off.

"You haven't seen mine," she mutters. Vlad raises an eyebrow, but stands up, gathers his rings calmly while looking at her, and then walks to the door.

"Call me once you're ready," he notes with one final amused glance in her direction and leaves her alone. Eszter waits for a minute to see if he changes his mind before stripping the soaked clothes and washing the rest of her body with the door of the room constantly in her line of sight.

Getting out of the bathtub and drying herself off feels like an almost Herculean task, but determination keeps her aching muscles moving. Once most of the dampness is gone, Eszter reaches for the change of clothes she always keeps in the bathroom and wraps her body in the comfortingly soft fabric.

True to his word, Vlad arrives when Eszter hesitantly calls his name. The man simply raises her into his lap and carries her to the sofa waiting in the common room. Her crutches are laid neatly under the coffee table and the leg brace rests on it. Eszter sighs a little as she wraps the brace around her leg and tries to tighten the straps. Large hands take the task after a moment of struggle and set the clips into their usual places.

"Thanks," Eszter mutters and rubs her face. She feels a bit better after the bath, but already lethargy is gaining ground in her body. The medicines Vlad has laid onto the coffee table next to a glass of water are downed in one big gulp and Eszter finally rests against the comfortable pillows.

Vlad nods his head quietly, watches her for just a moment longer, and leaves the common room. Eszter closes her eyes and tries to rest a little, and before she even notices it, sleep claims her.

* * *

 

The bout of illness passes with no mention of how Vlad lets Eszter rest or how he looks after her. Within a week, strength returns to Eszter's body and she can finally limp the short distance between the library and her rooms. Dora seems glad about her returning to work. It probably stems from how nervous she is around Matteo and Florence, poor girl.

The days are starting to become shorter and the nights are starting to feel crispy instead of suffocating with heat. The approaching winter means that the vampires are up longer and the time Eszter and Dora have for themselves will shorten until just before Christmas. The effect isn't as bad as it would be further north, but still noticeable enough. Dora at least seems worried about the coming winter and probably just the passage of time in general.

Life does seem to return to as normal as it is possible in that house upon the mountain. At first Dora's stay there can be counted only in days, then in weeks, and one day Eszter realises the girl has been there already for a whole three months. She doesn't say that to Dora. Eszter isn't quite sure if the girl has even realised it herself and notifying her of such a fact could cause her to act out. No, it is better to let the girl get used to the only future she will ever have.

One morning, Dora shakes Eszter awake with a scared look in her eyes.

"Eszter, please, you have to wake up," the other girl practically begs as Eszter rubs her eyes and blinks her eyes in confusion.

"What's going on?" Eszter mumbles and glances at the curtains. The sun is still up, but there isn't much time before sunset. Dora seems nervous as she does the same time check.

"Eszter, I'm bleeding," Dora mumbles and blushes violently. Eszter blinks confusedly.

"Bleeding?"

"You know, from _there_ ," Dora whispers. Eszter slowly realises what the other girl means and then curses. She gets up from bed as fast as she can and then digs into the drawer next to her bed. She pulls out the lock and quickly gives it to Dora.

"Go add this to the door. Vlad gave it for emergencies. He has a key, but at least Matteo and Florence won't be able to get here," Eszter quickly tells Dora. The girl bounds out of the room and apparently runs to the metal door between their wing and the main part of the house. Eszter opens the window of her room and then limps to the common room to open a window there as well. Dora comes back. Eszter looks at the other girl critically.

"Go have a bath. There is some gauze and cotton wool in the cabinet. I'll try to mask the smell," Eszter tells Dora. The other girl nods and looks pale as she slips into the bathroom. Eszter bends over the fireplace and lights the wood with shaking hands. Soon enough the warmth leaking from the room is replaced. Eszter gathers some of the flowers in the room and adds them into the flames, then the pouch of herbs Vlad gave for emergencies.

A quick look into Dora's room is enough to tell that the sheets need a thorough washing. Eszter casts a worried glance at the setting sun as she gathers the sheets. Dora slips into the room after a small moment smelling strongly of soap and perfume.

"You'll need to stay in this room just in case," Eszter tells Dora worriedly. "I can ask Vlad for a key or another lock, but I can't tell whether he'll agree. I'll wash these and hope it's enough. Keep the window open as long as you can."

Dora nods her head as Eszter leaves the room. The young woman can hear scratching and guesses Dora is trying to block the door with her wardrobe. Eszter takes in a shaky breath, sets the sheets into the bathtub, and starts scrubbing them with icy water and soap. The last rays of sunlight reach the bathroom, and then even they are gone.

Eszter goes to close the other two windows and lets the pungent, heavy smell of the herbs settle in the common room. The sheets will have to soak for a long while, but hopefully all the other smells will help in addition to keeping the bathroom window open.

"Eszter, what is this?" Matteo asks and touches the lock. Eszter casts a worried glance in the man's direction. He is frowning heavily and tests the lock's strength by shaking the gate.

"Please, go get Vlad," Eszter asks the man with a shaking voice.

"What's going on?" Matteo demands. The man is getting angrier. Eszter worries if some part of him can smell the blood in the air just faintly enough that he doesn't realise it but that he reacts to it.

"It's an emergency. Please, just get Vlad."

Matteo casts a suspicious glance in her direction before turning on his heels and sulking down the corridor. Eszter follows the man with her gaze while worrying her lip. She gets closer to the gate, but not close enough that anyone could grab her between the bars.

Matteo comes back a few minutes later with Vlad in tow. The man's nostrils widen just the barest amount as he smells the herbs and the fresh air that has replaced the typically settled one after a day of sleep.

"What has happened?" Vlad asks as he settles on the other side of the gate. Eszter glances over her shoulder at Dora's door and wonders if the other girl has found a way to listen. Most likely she wants to hear what is happening outside.

"Can you smell blood?" Eszter asks in a faint voice. Vlad takes in a deep breath and nods his head slowly.

"Is Dora injured?" he asks slowly. Eszter shakes her head. Vlad stares at her strangely for a moment before the penny drops. The man sighs. "Matteo, go get the bleach," Vlad orders the other man. There is a funny look on Matteo's face, but he doesn't argue back. Matteo slips down the corridor as Vlad nails his eyes on Eszter. "Do you have all the supplies you need?"

Eszter racks her brain for a moment.

"We'll need more gauze and cotton wool, maybe some mild painkillers, and a hot water bottle," Eszter lists quickly. Vlad seems to accept all the mentioned items. Eszter hesitates for a moment. "I'd like a lock for Dora's door, just to be sure."

"You know why I don't think that is a good idea," Vlad reminds her. Eszter bites her lip.

"I know," she murmurs. "I don't know if that lock is enough to keep Matteo or Florence away. It would be safer if Dora's room or mine had another lock. We'd have at least a moment longer."

Vlad studies her face. Matteo returns with a large canister that he lays on the floor with a thump. He takes in a breath, probably to say something, but his expression is quickly transformed into that of immense, all-encompassing hunger.

"Leave." The harsh words seem to change nothing, as Matteo gets closer to the gate. Vlad's cruel hand grabs Matteo's neck and squeezes tight. "I was not asking."

Matteo's eyes dart between Eszter and Vlad, but there seems to be enough reason left in his head for him to realise that Vlad is serious. Matteo leaves, but his steps drag on.

"What are you willing to give for another lock?" Vlad asks Eszter calmly. The young woman blinks. Her eyes stray from his figure as she tries to think of anything the man could want. Soon enough her thoughts turn to the cause of their problem.

"Blood?" Eszter suggests weakly. Vlad studies her face for a moment longer before producing a key from his pocket. He extends his hand from between the bars. Eszter clumsily gets closer and tries to take the key, but his fingers wrap around her hand tightly.

"You know what the price of betrayal is, don't you?" he reminds her. Eszter nods her head and swallows tightly. Vlad's fingers open and he lets go of her. The man looks at her as she limps across the common room to Dora's door.

"Dora? I have a key for your door," Eszter speaks through the heavy wood. A moment later the same screeching is heard as ten minutes ago. Eszter bends over and slips the key under the door. It is pulled through, and the lock clicks shut.

Eszter glances at Vlad. The man meets her eyes.

"I will be back soon," he promises and then walks down the corridor. Eszter lets out a breath and peeks into the bathroom. The water in the tub is pink. She lets it slip down the drain before filling the tub again.

Vlad pours some of the bleach into the water and makes Eszter twitch. The young woman quickly glances at the man, who leaves the bleach resting next to the tub.

"Aren't you worried we might use that for something?" Eszter asks slowly. Vlad raises his eyebrow.

"And risk my ire and taking away all the locks?" he answers. Eszter shivers in fear as she imagines that happening. Vlad's eyes take in the reaction and then glance at the sheets. The room is freezing cold with fresh air from outside and the sharp stench of the bleach probably masks the blood, but Eszter can't be all sure.

There is a pile of supplies on the common room coffee table. Eszter catalogues them quickly. Vlad has brought much more than Eszter asked for. There is even food and a few books, not to mention the pouches of herbs and two other locks.

"I have keys to them as well, but do use them on the gate if you are that worried," the man says. Eszter nods her head and tries to understand what has made Vlad act as decently as he has. Perhaps he wasn't prepared for this to happen and is now apologising for it in his own way. Perhaps he simply expects Eszter to pay back the kindness. Whatever the reason, Eszter knows that Vlad wouldn't have gone this far if she hadn't offered her blood willingly in exchange.

Vlad leaves and locks the gate. Eszter adds the other two locks to hold the it and glances curiously at Vlad before returning to the common room.

Dora opens her door after many assertions that none of the vampires are nearby. Eszter quickly hands over the gauze and the cotton wool, the painkillers, and the hot water bottle, two of the books, and a bit of food. Dora takes them with a frown upon her face but says nothing as she closes and locks the door again.

Eszter settles down on the sofa and wonders about the deal she has made with the devil himself.


	4. Chapter 4

Sleeping in the same bed as another living human being feels odd after so many years of never hearing another person moving during the daytime. Eszter glances at Dora's sleeping form and blinks slowly. She can't have been asleep for long, yet she doesn't feel tired at all. Eszter slowly gets up and glances out of the window.

The past few nights have been stressful to say the least. Eszter is surprised that everything has turned out as well as it has considering the many ways everything could have gone wrong. No one has hurt or even touched Dora, and only Vlad has occasionally delved into their domain. No, these past few days have been almost peaceful in a manner.

Eventually Eszter is done with just laying around and gets up as quietly as she can. Dora's sleep remains deep and undisturbed even when a small crease forms on her forehead. Eszter quietly slips on her leg brace and limps out of the room. The lock can remain open during the daylight hours. Only Vlad can face the day out of the three vampires in the house.

It's a beautiful, warm day. There is still just a hint of summer in the air, but the morning was crispy and some nights the temperature has dropped below freezing. The sun caresses skin that is pale after another summer. Eszter lays her eyes on the horizon and lets her mind wander for a long while. Only a gentle breeze moves through the world that remains still and the same even with the change of seasons.

"Shouldn't you be sleeping?" Vlad asks her as he settles next to her. Eszter shrugs and stares at the deep shadows of the mountain valleys.

"Probably I should," Eszter murmurs yet she doesn't move a limb. Vlad's eyes go over her form. Eszter's wandering mind doesn't note what the man is looking for. Instead it focuses on all the colours around her, all the greens and golds and oranges and reds.

They sit there for a while, looking at the world. This small garden is hidden between two wings of the house. They rarely come here. Once it may have been a beautiful garden, once everything in it may have been planned, but now the fountain is cracked and the flowers bloom wild. Somehow Eszter thinks it wouldn't be as dear if everything was meticulous.

Even though Vlad sits next to her, the shadow just barely covers the man. With a quick glance Eszter notes how the man seems to be calm this day. He doesn't seem like he's angry at her spending her time in this garden even when they aren't really allowed outside during the daylight hours.

His anger may just be hidden, but Eszter doesn't think so, not this time.

"I'm worried about Dora," she confesses silently. Vlad studies her face.

"Why?"

Eszter thinks for a moment.

"She keeps talking in her sleep," Eszter says silently. "Still hopes someone will show up and save her, or then she keeps calling for her parents. She seems so young."

"You were younger than her when you came here," Vlad notes. He's not wrong. Dora is already a few years older than Eszter was, but still…

"She keeps clinging to her innocence and to life. I had made my peace with death long before you ever decided to bring me here."

Vlad's eyes leave her form for a moment and travel the world in front of them. He's been in the house longer than typically, has barely left for a few days here and there. Eszter can't remember if it was the same when she was brought in. Those days are too blurry with fear to remember in that much detail.

"What about now?" the man asks instead of commenting on Dora. "Are you still at peace with death?"

Eszter thinks about for a long moment. She doesn't want to die, has never wanted that, but at the same time she knows that death can be a relief. She still remembers the months she spent in the iron lung wondering how many days she would still last. She still remembers all those times she wondered if she would suffocate when the nurses had to stop the machine even for a moment.

"I'm not scared of it, but I still wouldn't want to face it," Eszter eventually says. Vlad nods his head.

"Dora seems much younger than her years," the man comments calmly. "When you were her age, I already started wondering when to turn you, but she seems much too young. She certainly is not what I expected Helen and Paul's daughter to be. Her father seems to have guarded her from the world jealously."

Vlad seems to expect Eszter to say something, but the young woman has nothing to say. She worries about Dora. Life used to be much simpler before the girl ever came to the library. The days kept repeating, the seasons changed, but at least Eszter was content. Now she's constantly on edge, constantly second-guessing her decisions and wondering if she should try escaping just one, final time.

The breeze carries a faint smell of the summer gone. Eszter closes her eyes for just a moment and feels tired deep within her bones.

"Will you drink from me now?" Eszter asks and opens her eyes to take in the view. Vlad turns to face her completely, and slowly Eszter does the same. The man in front of her has hidden all his thoughts, but there is the barest flash of desire in his eyes. Eszter doesn't flinch. She has known for a long time already that the man would drink her blood whether she allowed it or not.

"You have been wondering about that, haven't you?" Vlad notes calmly enough. His eyes rake over her calm form. "Wondering when you'll have to pay the price."

"It's hard not to," Eszter says silently. Her eyes stray just for the barest moment before returning to his harsh face, to his strong jaw and thin lips. "It's not like you won't ever do that. I just wondered when it would happen. Might be easier to prepare for it."

Vlad studies her for a long moment. The birds are singing and screeching somewhere far away. Only the echo can be heard. Eszter is reminded of the world away from that mountain, of the world she has barely seen during the nine years she has known of his library. Three times she has left on her own and three times they've brought her back. Once she was taken to have a look at a book and to learn that aspect of being a librarian, and another time they took her to the clinic to make sure she was all healed after the car crash. Eszter wonders if she'll ever see the nearby town with human eyes again.

"You aren't afraid," Vlad says after an intense moment filled with staring. "That's not very common."

"As I said, I made my peace with death a long while ago," she reminds him.

"But death is different from pain."

He is right, of course. Eszter doesn't know whether being bitten will hurt or not, but she'd imagine it would. After all, deep wounds tend to ache for a long while. She hasn't asked Matteo or Florence, although when she first arrived she sometimes saw Florence rubbing at her throat. It was barely more than an unconscious movement. Eszter isn't sure whether that was from pain or just a remainder of Florence's human life.

"I doubt there is worse pain than suffocating in the iron lung," Eszter says quietly. Vlad hums.

"I wouldn't know of that," he drawls slowly, "but suffocation certainly can be torturous."

They sit in silence for a long moment. The sunlight caressing Eszter's skin is covered by a stray cloud for a moment. She doesn't move from her place, but Vlad glances at the sky.

"Does it hurt to be outside during the day?" Eszter asks curiously. Vlad's eyes pierce her.

"Why do you ask?" he answers sharply. Eszter shrugs.

"I just wonder what it will be like, afterwards," she says. "It's not like you three have ever told me. I just wonder how long it will take until I can sit in the sunlight."

Vlad studies her and seems to be calculating whether to answer or not. The man will draw his own conclusions of Eszter's question no matter how she'll try to explain how she will miss this garden in the daylight hours. Eszter glances at her lap and the wild roses that are creeping closer to the bench with every passing year. One day they will cover this seat. One day the memory of her sitting in the sun will be just a passing fancy if such even exists.

"It takes a long while to be able to do this," Vlad reveals eventually. Eszter nods her head. She had guessed as much. She's never seen Florence or Matteo out and about while the sun is up. Vlad only does so rarely.

Eszter wonders if the man will lock the doors after this day. He usually doesn't bother with that. He knows they can track everyone who tries to flee. It wouldn't even be too difficult. After all, there is only the one road to the mountain hideaway and the steep and narrow path Dora tried. Besides, the cliffs can be scoured with just a glance for the others who decide to take the third option.

Eszter can feel how tired her body is, but her mind keeps wandering to dangerous thoughts, to her memories of a life lived outside. She tries to ignore how she misses her mother and the life they used to have, tries to ignore how she wants to know the world again, tries to ignore how she sometimes wonders what happened to all the people she used to know. There really is no point in thinking those kinds of thoughts. There really is no point in trying to find out something like that, and yet...

The cloud settles in front of the sun. Vlad rises and offers a hand to Eszter, who takes it and lets the man help her up. Her crutches slip easily under her shoulders and she slowly limps her way inside with Vlad right behind her back.

The man stops her in front of the doors to the library. Eszter raises her eyes to face his and waits for a moment for him to say something, but instead he looks at her. There is something primal in his eyes, something frightening which makes Eszter's stomach lurch, but she remains still. Her legs wouldn't carry her even if she tried to flee. She can only stand there as the man takes her arm and slowly raises her sleeve to reveal the pale skin beneath. Vlad studies her arm for a long moment, lets his fingers feel the veins underneath the thin skin. Eszter's heart beats erratically and she knows he can feel her pulse just as clearly as she can.

He doesn't grip her as he slowly kisses her wrist. Eszter shivers a bit. His lips are cold. She keeps expecting a sharp piercing pain, but no such thing comes.

"You are still so soft and young," Vlad murmurs against her skin. His eyes flash in her direction, but then his eyes are hooded again. The man kisses her wrist softly, almost reverently. Eszter is at a loss.

His mouth leaves her skin after a long moment. Eszter can only stare at Vlad as he straightens and then lets her arm down again. Her hand finds the handle of the crutch again and grips it. Eszter realises she is shaking. Confusion has flooded her blood, as has fear.

Eszter has to calm herself for many a long minute in the bathroom before she stops shaking and can even think about going to sleep. Dora will expect to wake up next to her, that is certain, but somehow Eszter knows that falling asleep next to the girl will just lead to trouble.

Eszter washes her face with chilly water and dries it carefully. She studies her mirror image for a moment before she forces herself to slip back into the bedroom. Dora's eyes crack open just a little.

"Where did you disappear to?" Dora murmurs with sleep colouring her voice. Eszter gives back a quick, shaky smile.

"Go back to sleep," she tells Dora as she settles under her own blanket.

Eszter stares at the ceiling for long hours as she wonders about Vlad's behaviour.

* * *

The days return to their normal rhythm soon enough. Eszter and Dora change their sleeping cycles just enough that they can catch the two full hours before sunset, and little enough that the vampires won't notice. The daylight hours are the only time when Dora feels comfortable enough talking about all the things running through her head, and Eszter knows she has to listen to the other girl just to make sure she won't do anything stupid that will hurt both of them.

There are nights when Dora is nervous and keeps glancing around, and then there are those nights the other girl barely speaks. The girl's mood keeps swinging from one end to the other. One moment Dora is full of hope for the future, and the next she is filled with deepest despair. She is still struggling with the imprisonment, keeps clutching onto childish dreams and hopes.

Eszter has been there long enough to know that trying to plan the future is of no use. There was a time she used to plan her escape and what she would do once she returned to her own life, but she has barely given a second thought to that life in years. Sometimes she wonders how others' lives continued after her disappearance, but she never imagines how she would change them by returning.

Dora wonders about that, Eszter can see it in the way the girl carries herself, in the way she keeps glancing at the front door, in the way Dora sometimes stops in the middle of a sentence.

Dora's second escape is therefore no surprise for Eszter. One day she wakes up to realise that their wing is too quiet. A quick tour around the rooms tell her enough. The window in Dora's room is open. The ledge is just wide enough that Dora could climb her way to solid ground instead of falling off. Eszter still anxiously glances down and rakes the view with her eyes. There is no body, so presumably Dora at least made it safely until the courtyard.

Eszter sighs as she writes a note and leaves it on the gate to their wing. Someone will find it soon enough. She'll just go back to sleep. The night is going to be a long one, and so it is best to get enough sleep now.

She is woken up rudely some hours late by Matteo who drags her out of bed with an unhappy look on his face. The man discards her in front of Vlad and then leaves the house. Eszter is glad she had the sense to sleep in something else than just a flimsy dress, because Vlad's eyes pierce her and nail her onto the armchair she landed roughly in.

Vlad grabs her chin and stares straight into her eyes.

"Did you know Dora was planning for another escape attempt?" he hisses at Eszter. Her neck hurts a bit with how unyielding his hands are, but she doesn't dare to even attempt moving.

"I don't know any details," Eszter quickly swears. "I just know she's been planning something ever since the whole blood episode, but nothing more, I swear."

Vlad's cruel eyes study her face for a long moment for the barest hint of a lie, but they find nothing. His fingers open and the man lets go of her face, stepping towards the large window. Eszter waits nervously for the sentencing that will come much sooner than she could ever be ready for.

"She stole the car, just like you did," Vlad murmurs with his back to her. Eszter can feel shivers running down her spine. "Unlike you, however, she wasn't smart enough to do any more damage. We already know which direction she headed in. They will collect her soon, I am certain."

Vlad says nothing of the way he will punish Dora. An uncomfortable feeling settles in Eszter's stomach as she stares at the sharp lines of his figure and the harshness of his position. She can only guess what the man is thinking of, can only guess what plans he is developing.

Nothing good, she knows.

They don't let Eszter get out of eyesight even for the shortest moment. It is humiliating to have to use the bathroom while Florence watches, but at least it is Florence and not Matteo or Vlad. They give her food and her medicine, but she can barely swallow the pills. Most of the food goes cold as she waits in silence. There are phone calls and short, tense conversations in languages Eszter can only catch a few words in. There are hundreds of distrusting glances cast in her direction.

Dora is brought back bound and gagged by one of Vlad's human followers, one of the possible candidates to work in the library. Eszter doesn't meet Dora's eyes as she is unceremoniously laid on the floor in front of Vlad. The man nods his head at the human follower and says a rare word of praise. Eszter waits for the human to leave and the moment they are left alone with Vlad.

The door is closed with an ominous thump. Vlad glances meaningfully at Eszter, who quickly crawls to Dora and opens the bindings. The other girl sits up. There is still defiance in the eyes and the jaw. Eszter can do nothing but helplessly wait for Vlad to speak.

"You have been treated far kinder than you clearly deserve," Vlad says quietly. There is a threatening quality to his voice as he studies the two women. Eszter is almost shaking, that afraid she is, but Dora still seems to imagine that this punishment won't be any worse than the first one.

Eszter hopes she would have spoken about her second and third punishments just to make sure Dora would really know the price for an attempt, but she hadn't. Regret travels through every limb just as quickly as adrenaline.

"You seriously can't believe I wouldn't even try," Dora spits out. There is still a fire burning in her eyes. Eszter wants to hide it, hopes it would die out. Dora is acting reckless. She has no clue of all the ways Vlad can be cruel, of all the ways the man can punish them both.

Vlad remains cool and collected as he studies them and seems to come to a decision.

"Matteo," he calls. Eszter swallows thickly as the door opens and the other man steps in.

"Take Eszter. You can have her for a week," Vlad says calmly. Dora's eyes fill with fear as she looks at Eszter and tries to meet her eyes, but Eszter can only stare at Vlad. There is a hardness on the man's face that usually remains hidden.

"Anything I want?" Matteo asks slowly. There is already a calculating tone to the voice.

"Nothing distasteful, nothing permanent, and no blood," Vlad decrees. Matteo grabs Eszter's arm and drags her behind himself, away from that room. Dora tries to scramble for them, but Florence closes the door quickly. Dora keeps banging at the wood as Matteo drags Eszter into the forbidden wing.

Eszter doesn't fight back. She already knows it's too late for that.


	5. Chapter 5

The water in the bathtub has turned cold ages ago, yet Eszter can't find the strength to get up and finish washing. She keeps on leaning back, sinking lower. Her lips are almost touching the water, almost slipping beneath the still surface.

There is no sunshine to be found this morning. The sky is dark and stormy, almost as dark as the night can be. The rain has been hitting the windows for hours and the wind keeps howling distractingly. Eszter closes her eyes for a long moment and tries to forget her aching, bruised body.

The week may be over, but it is still too fresh to completely forget. There is an ache deep within her bones, a sluggishness that won't leave for a long time. Her body slips further in and her face is covered by the cool water. She counts the seconds until she has enough mental strength to pull herself back into a sitting position. Her face feels numb and swollen. Matteo didn't draw any blood, but there are countless bruises underneath her skin. Eszter's worn gaze settles at one of the bigger ones on her thigh and stares at it for a long while.

It's time to get up, to dry off, to drag herself back into her own bed. She knows she should crawl underneath the covers and forget everything, knows how she's supposed to get back up the following night like nothing has happened, but she can't seem to move a single muscle. The minutes tick by. Lightning rumbles and a bright flash blinds the room for a moment, but then the haziness of half-light returns.

Eszter doesn't notice her mind slipping away into dreamland, but she wakes with water burning her throat and harsh hands grabbing her body. She coughs uncomfortably and blinks her eyes wide open. Vlad's face is harsh as he looks at her and holds her arms with bruising force. Eszter can hear hurried steps behind the man's back and she notices as Dora stops at the door to the bathroom.

"Give me that towel," Vlad orders in a low voice. Eszter shivers in cold as the man pulls her up almost too easily and lets her wrap herself in the towel. He doesn't step away from her, though. Instead, Vlad pulls the plug from the tub and lets the water vanish down the drain. Eszter rubs at her aching throat as the man keeps staring at her unnervingly.

It takes long moments for her breathing to ease up and for her body to finish shivering violently. Only then does Vlad take a few steps back and goes to pick up her clothes from the shelf. He gives them to her pointedly and then turns his back but doesn't leave. Eszter stares at the man's back for a moment, but then she slowly twists and tries to get the pyjamas on without shoving too much skin. It would be far too easy for him to take a glance at the mirror and see everything, after all.

Eszter tries not to think about what the man saw when he pulled her from underneath the water.

Dora is stuck at the door, stares at Eszter with large and frightened eyes. One of them has a ring of black around it, a bruise that has spread down the cheek. Eszter finishes buttoning the shirt and then glances at Vlad. The man senses that she is done, as he pulls her up easily and half carries, half drags her across the common room into her own bed.

Vlad's fingers are a little damp as he studies her throat and then listens to her lungs. Their coldness makes him seem more like a corpse than ever before as he traces the bruises on Eszter's body.

He doesn't say anything as he leaves, but Eszter has an uneasy feeling as Dora comes to sit next to her. It takes a long while for Eszter to calm down enough to brush her matted hair and to stop shaking.

Eszter lies under the covers long enough that Dora falls asleep, and only then cries.

* * *

 There is a new kind of silence in the library. Eszter didn't notice it at first, but after sitting there for a couple of hours and writing down new cards to the archive she can feel it too. Dora sits nearby and keeps glancing at her direction, Eszter feels the weight on her skin, but the girl says nothing. Eszter presses down new letters and writes the cards as quickly as she can even if her hand shakes violently.

The silence is heavy and loaded. Eszter knows it is because of her, because of Dora's second escape attempt, because of the week she tries her hardest not to think about. Dora blames herself, it's clear as day, but Eszter can't even find the energy to talk to the girl. She barely has the energy to work, and she is already exhausted and just keeps wishing for more sleep.

Matteo sneaks up on her and lays his hand on her shoulder. Eszter doesn't shrug it off, doesn't change anything. She finishes the card and moves onto the next.

"I was thinking we could have some more fun tonight," Matteo murmurs suggestively. "What do you say, hmm?"

Eszter doesn't say anything mostly because she has no clue as to what kind of an answer she is expected to give. Would Vlad really allow it to continue? Would he really be that cruel as to extend the punishment until further notice? Eszter had counted on the fact that it was going to be just that one week and then it would stop, but what if…

The silence stretches as Eszter's exhausted brain goes through the scenario and tries to understand all the implications. She swallows and stares at the spreading ink blotch on the archive card. Her hands shake as she tries to blot it away, tries to save her work, but the ink has already seeped into the thick paper and ruined it.

Eszter feels like crying.

"Leave her alone," Florence calls from behind all the shelves. Matteo doesn't let go. Instead, he grasps her shoulder even tighter.

There's nothing Eszter can do to fight back, is there? She's stuck there no matter what, and only Vlad can decide what happens to her.

"Matteo, I swear to God, I will throw you off this fucking mountain myself," Florence threatens. Matteo lets out an annoyed huff, but he also does let go of Eszter and slinks back to their workstation.

Eszter is shaking like a leaf and she can feel how Dora stares at her which just makes it worse. She forces herself to calm down, swallows her panic and her tears, and slowly rips the soiled card in two before slipping the halves into the bin. She closes her eyes for a moment, takes in a few slow breaths, and then returns to her cards and archive.

The morning is still too far away when Eszter stumbles to the cabinets and starts setting her finished cards to their places. Her clumsy fingers drop the paper slips more often than is common, but as no one is watching her work, no one notices.

It won't be long until all the books have been brought in and sorted through. It won't be long until the expansion can truly begin. Sure, some of Vlad's vassals have been searching already, but that will be nothing compared to the change that will come when the last books of his collections have been added to the main library. That day is maybe only a year or two away. She used to think it was such a fleeting time, used to think so because she could already guess that her final days as a human would ultimately end at that time, but now a year or two seems an immense amount of time. Time has stopped and drags its feet now that it has been forced to pass again.

Eszter's legs give out. She has just enough time to bring her arms in front of her as she falls, just enough time to avoid hitting her face on the corner of a filing cabinet. The metal screeches against the stone. A resounding crash rings through the library as her crutches clang on the cabinets and then on the floor.

Florence is the first to show up, but Dora is not far behind. Matteo arrives lazily with an annoyed look on his face. Annoyance soon turns to a frown.

Florence helps Eszter up and onto her crutches, but frowns as she sees how shaky Eszter is on them.

"Are you feeling unwell?" Florence asks and studies Eszter's form for just a moment longer before deciding it is better to just act as a crutch herself.

"Dizzy," Eszter mumbles. Dora settles on her other side.

"Should we take her back to her room?" Dora asks with an uncertain glance. Matteo crosses his arms and looks unhappy. There is no way of telling what exactly he is so unhappy about. It could be Eszter's weakness, it could be her leaving the library before finishing her work for the night, or it could be thinking about how to explain this to Vlad. Eszter hopes that Vlad will punish Matteo. The man is rarely happy for any interruptions to the work done in the library, and those have been abundant in the past few months.

"It's probably for the best," Florence notes. "I for one don't want to think about what would happen if she fainted and hit her head hard enough to cause a concussion or worse. Vlad would probably skin us."

"I'm not irreplaceable," Eszter groans as they start dragging her towards their wing. Florence snorts, but it's barely audible.

"No, you aren't," Florence agrees, but there is something odd in her voice and choice of words. Eszter is much too sick to think about it for much longer.

They lay her down on her bed. Florence removes Eszter's shoes and starts unstrapping her leg with a calmness and certainty that comes from being familiar with the process. The first few years Florence used to keep an eye on her and took her crutches and brace away for the daytime as insurance, but at some point, the practice stopped. More freedom was given as time went by.

Dora gained freedom much more quickly. The gate to their wing was left open during the days and Vlad didn't take back the keys and the locks at first. Now the windows have been barred and the keys are gone. Eszter wonders whether they'll start taking her crutches for the day again.

Dora leaves the room after a soft-spoken but firm order from Florence. The woman remains seated next to Eszter as the door to the room is closed. She seems to be listening to Dora's steps and making sure that the girl is gone before she speaks.

"How bad was Matteo really?" Florence asks. Eszter swallows and closes her eyes for a moment. The aches and exhaustion haven't had time to leave her bones yet. It would be much easier to speak of this if it were so.

"I'm just mostly tired." The lie is small enough to pass. Florence knows Eszter, but they really aren't friends even if they have lived in relative peace all these years. Florence doesn't know her well enough to know how Eszter doesn't answer the question. Sure, she says something, but she just can't say how bad it got.

Eszter just wants to forget that the week ever happened.

"Rest for a day or two," Florence says eventually. Eszter nods her head and stares at the night sky that is visible through the crack in the curtains. Florence leaves, and there is only silence in the room.

Eszter doesn't dream, doesn't have nightmares, but when she is woken the next night to eat, she feels just as tired as if she had.

* * *

 Another day passes sleeping it away. Eszter wakes to catch the latter half of the sunset, but she still isn't feeling too well as she brushes her hair and clumsily braids it again. Dora keeps glancing in her direction, hesitates between saying something and staying quiet, but when the last rays of light are about to disappear, she finally opens her mouth.

"Are you okay?" Dora asks. Eszter stops for a moment and plays with her hair as she thinks. Physically she is much worse but not nearly as bad as she could be. Her mental state is even a mystery to her own self.

"I don't know," she can only answer. The time spent resting has helped some of the pain and exhaustion, but there is still a weariness in her body that wasn't there before. Eszter can't really be sure if it will ever leave her.

"Vlad seemed annoyed with Matteo because you can't work," Dora tells her. Eszter nods her head quietly and finishes the braid. She still feels like going back to sleep. Her body keeps shaking and shivering. Eszter knows that it's at least partially mental since it gets much worse during the night.

"Hopefully he stays annoyed for a little while longer. If he's angrier with Matteo than with me I get to rest some more," Eszter says. Dora nods, but there is a frown on her face.

They don't have to wait for a long time for the sun to set and the gate to be opened, but it is a surprise to see Vlad. Usually Florence is the one to accompany them into the kitchen, but now the man watches mutely as they make their way to the already set table. There is more food than usually. Eszter only notes it before taking her medicine and rubbing her forehead and trying to ease the headache she's had ever since waking up.

There is no talking as they eat. Dora is too nervous, Vlad too content with studying them. Eszter has to focus on eating to not nod off in the middle of it like the night before.

The food is tasty. Soon there is a pleasant, warm heaviness at the bottom of her core that certainly makes staying awake much more difficult. Eszter lays down the cutlery cleanly and then waits until Dora is done. Her thoughts keep running their own tracks.

"Go on to the library," Vlad tells Dora once she is finished. The girl looks uncertain. "I must speak with Eszter."

Since Eszter remains calm, Dora seems to believe there is nothing to worry about. She slips quietly out of the room. Vlad waits for a moment until he gets up and waits Eszter for a moment before walking into the direction of their wing and common room.

Vlad looks serious as he looks at her and glances in the direction of her bedroom. Eszter frowns a bit, but then makes her way in. The man follows her and closes the door behind him.

"I need to study your injuries," Vlad says. Eszter stands still for a long moment, only closes her eyes and takes in a couple of deep breaths. She slowly sits down on the edge of her bed and looks a little off from him.

"Why?" she asks. The serious look on his face doesn't change.

"You might have severe internal bleeding," the man tells her. Eszter glances at Vlad and then slowly nods her head. She raises her hands to her chest and starts unbuttoning the pyjama top. Vlad's eyes follow the movement.

Once he can see her skin, he steps closer and touches one of the larger bruises. Eszter nails her eyes on the opposing wall as Vlad studies her injuries and seems to be searching for something specific. His fingers are cold and feel too much like Matteo's. Eszter can feel herself tensing up more and more.

"I need to see your hips and stomach," the man murmurs. Eszter slowly moves away from her slump and tries to let him see her skin at those areas. He doesn't say anything out loud, but there is something unsettling in how he behaves.

Eventually he steps away. Eszter pulls her shirt back on and only then glances at Vlad. The man's eyes haven't left her even for a moment.

"Is it going to kill me?" she asks quietly. Vlad shakes his head.

"I do not think so, but it is no wonder if you're feeling as poorly as you are. Half your blood seems to be in those bruises."

He sounds disapproving. Eszter wonders about it for a moment, but then shakes off the thought. There is no sense in trying to understand that.

"Well, suppose Matteo will have to be more careful next time," Eszter says and drags herself closer to the centre of the bed so she can straighten her leg. Vlad bends his head the tiniest fraction.

"Matteo should know better," he says, clearly displeased with the man. "He knows there are hundreds that could replace him with only a little training, but few that could ever understand my library the way you do."

It is an odd compliment he pays her, but she only shrugs it off. Vlad says odd things more commonly now than he used to. Eszter has better things to think about rather than trying to solve what exactly the man means with his words.

There is a calm silence in the room for a short while as Eszter slowly works through her leg muscles and observes the aches between the two. The right is as stiff as ever, but its pains are far more familiar to her. The left is more swollen, filled with bruises. Its aches are entirely new, but there is something already known to her in it. She got beaten up after her third escape attempt nearly as badly, so it is no wonder this seems so alike those days.

"Are you not angry?" Vlad asks her. Eszter glances at the man.

"Anger requires too much effort," she says. "You've made the rules as clear as they can be and I knew exactly what the punishment for the second escape attempt is. I could have told Dora that it wouldn't be her paying the price, but she also needs to learn the rules if she wants to survive here."

"That still doesn't mean you couldn't be angry with Matteo at least," Vlad points out and crosses his arms.

"I suppose I could be angry with him," Eszter admits slowly. "He didn't have to take it that far, but I think we all know Matteo is an asshole and will always remain one."

"Such language from a lady," Vlad tuts, but there is an amused twist in the corner of his eye. He has without a doubt heard much worse throughout his years.

"You could sit down, you know," Eszter notes after a moment. "Your looming isn't exactly most easygoing view I've ever had."

Vlad raises an eyebrow at the comment. Eszter knows her medicine must influence her much more than usual for her to be so easygoing about it. Vlad studies her for a moment, as if deciding whether she is serious or not, but then he apparently decides there is no harm in her request as he sits down next to her.

Well. That wasn't quite what Eszter expected, but there is no point being coy now.

"Someone's going to get the wrong idea," she jokes to cover her confusion. Vlad huffs half a laugh.

"You were the one to tell me to sit down," he reminds her. She nods and leans slightly back, stretching her aching muscles.  Vlad's eye catches the movement, but he doesn't comment on it. He's seen the bruises and must understand how much she aches all over.

Eszter lets herself relax for a moment. Her minds wanders, her posture slips a bit, and her attention is off for a moment long enough to be surprised as Vlad gets closer to her and then –

He kisses her. The thought runs through her mind quickly and draws her back into the moment. Her eyes flash open, but the man doesn't draw back. There is something oddly gentle in the way he kisses her, but at the same time, there is no uncertainty. He has decided to kiss her, and so he does.

"Why did you do that?" bursts out of her mouth once the kiss has ended. Vlad raises an eyebrow at her and looks amused.

"I was curious," he tells her. Eszter nods her head slowly even though she really doesn't understand. Why would he be curious of kissing her? Is this some kind of a new game, is he just trying to confuse her, is he trying to see what exactly Matteo did to her? All these thoughts bounce around her head as he lets the worn surface of his thumb travel over her lips. His eyes follow the movement before catching hers.

"Still so young, still so innocent, yet not quite," he murmurs. His head tilts closer, and this time Eszter is prepared. She still doesn't really know what's happening, but after a short moment she relaxes and lets the man explore her lips. She doesn't know what to do.

This is her second kiss ever.

"Is it really?" Vlad notes dryly against her lips. Only then does Eszter realise she has said it out loud, has confessed to the man that he stole her first kiss. There is a gleam in his eyes as he leans closer. "Better make it memorable, then."

His finger quickly wrap themselves around her skull and loosen the braid until hair falls freely. Eszter is only dimly aware of that happening as the man wraps her into a tight embrace. Never before has she been as aware of the strength underneath those immaculate clothes nor how the muscles move in sync with his thoughts. Never before has she ever opened her mouth and tentatively answered to a kiss, never before has she felt blood rushing to her face and her breathing tensing while she melts against another body.

The kiss is unyielding but not unpleasant. She can feel how he bites her lip and can taste the slightest hint of copper, can feel him kissing hard enough to bruise her lips, but the moment she feels his cold fingers running down her spine and touching one of those aching bruises, she winces and tenses up. He doesn't immediately let go of her, but instead lets the kiss end on its own time.

Eszter is dizzy and her heart is pounding as she brings a finger to her lips and looks at the blood staining her fingertip. Vlad takes her hand between his own and kisses the blood off from her skin.

"Enough excitement for today, don't you think?" he asks her. Eszter tries to catch her breath. She glances at the man and feels her cheeks burning. He chuckles as he brushes her coppery hair behind her ear.

Could she even ask if she dared what the kiss was about? Would he even answer her what this means, what its implications are?

His lips are red with her blood as he slowly licks them. Eszter realises that she has now paid for the comfort of locks, though she really didn't expect it to happen like this.

"Does this count as a bite?" she asks, still a little dazed. Vlad seems more amused than anything else.

"Not in that sense," he tells her. He's had the barest taste of her now. Eszter wonders if he'll want her blood soon again, if he'll actually bite her now. She's confused and tired and in pain, and Vlad seems to understand it, because he gets up in his swift and confident manner.

"Do try to rest a little," he says before he slips away from her room. The door closes with a silent thud. Eszter stares at it for a long while afterwards and tries to make sense of what just happened. Vlad checked her injuries, but he also kissed her and tasted her blood. She can't quite figure out whether this was some sort of a test or not, but perhaps she'll learn the results eventually.

Eszter decides there's no point in wallowing the thoughts. She slips under the covers and closes her eyes, tries to fall asleep, but the taste of the kiss and the touch of his skin lingers on her lips and plagues her restless dreams.

Dora slips into the bed once morning is much closer.

"What did he want?" she whispers. Eszter sleepily opens her eyes and glances at the young girl.

"Checked my injuries to make sure they weren't too serious," she murmurs and lets her eyes droop close again. Eszter says nothing of the way he touched her or how he wrapped her into an embrace. It's too messy even in her head to describe, and besides, Dora would only worry about what it means.

No, best just wait it out.

The next night can't came slowly enough.

* * *

 They don't speak of the kiss. For the next couple of days, Eszter is left mostly alone to regain her strength and once she stops feeling too shaky on her crutches, she returns to the library as if nothing had changed. Vlad only pays her a passing glance and says nothing, but there is a new weight in his eyes. Eszter doesn't really know how the future will span out, but she's determined not to think about it too much. After all, it would be pointless. Whatever Vlad decides is what happens in the library. Eszter can resist, but if the man wants something, he will eventually get it.

Eszter just doesn't know what to think about the kisses the man laid on her lips. She keeps thinking about it even while working, keeps wondering why exactly he has decided to change their relationship now. Vlad is a patient man, has had to become one throughout all his years, but he acted quite rashly.

There are so many reasons why the man could have decided to kiss her, but Eszter can barely think of a few before she has to stop herself. She's not working as effectively as usually, and the others have already noticed it.

Matteo at least stays far away from her. Florence is the one to take the finished books to their places and to file the cards Eszter prepares. Dora is nearby, learning the principles of the system. Eszter can already tell the girl is going to be an immense help in keeping the archive up to date.

An hour or two after midnight Vlad comes to the archive and flips through the cards. Eszter writes out the next card and checks it quickly for spelling errors before setting it aside for Dora to file.

"Are you healed already?" the man asks with his back still to them. Dora is startled, but Eszter only adds another notecard to the pile and checks Florence's notes for the next book.

"Good enough to work," Eszter answers and frowns as she tries to read Florence's messy handwriting. As good as the woman is as a conservator, her handwriting truly is atrocious.

"There are other things to do here than just work," Vlad notes. Eszter huffs.

"Really? Hadn't even noticed," she says sarcastically and tries to get the jammed typewriter to work. It's been doing it more often than before. Eszter frowns as she turns the machine around and tries to delicately solve the issue.

Dora keeps following their conversation without commenting. Vlad apparently finds what he seeks, since he is quiet for a moment as he apparently reads the notecard before returning it back into the archive.

"Leave it," the man says. "We have quite a few things to discuss."

Eszter glances up and forgets for a moment that Dora is watching them intently. She almost asks about if they'll finally talk about what happened that night he checked on her injuries, but stops herself in time. Dora's eyes are so intense that they're almost burning.

They go to the courtyard and sit by the edge of the garden just like they sat that one day. This time autumn is fully there and already the nighttime air carries with it a hint of winter. Eszter's clothes are thick enough to keep the cold at bay for now, but not for long.

"That was your last summer as a human," Vlad tells her and studies her face. Eszter blinks a little and her mouth opens the tiniest amount. She lowers her eyes and thinks about Vlad's words for a good while.

Her last summer as a human, and she didn't even pay that much attention to it. If she had, maybe she would have spent more days outside in the sun, maybe she would have visited the garden more often, but now is too late to think about what ifs. Perhaps this autumn will end with her transformation, or maybe Vlad will wait until the spring. His words loom over the future like a dark promise. There will no longer be another summer, not like Eszter has known summers before.

She's going to miss the garden during those stolen afternoon moments, the fragrances from the wild-grown flowers and the occasional birds that would fly high enough to visit her sanctuary. Eszter blinks and feels tears in her eyes. She didn't think the news would be that hard to take. She's known for a while already that she's getting closer to being as ready as Vlad wants her to be before turning her.

He can see her tears as she blinks them back, of course, but keeps quiet for as longs as she needs to collect her thoughts.

"How long still?" Eszter asks. She needs to know. There's nothing to tell her what will happen afterwards, how much she'll change. She wants to know how long she'll at least feel like herself.

"Before the new year," Vlad says. Eszter nods her head slowly. After her next birthday. She'll get to feel what being 24 is like, but perhaps that's not important. After all, there have already been many things she hasn't had the chance to experience that she hasn't grieved after.

His fingers touch her face lightly and Eszter looks at the man. He leans closer and kisses her again, but this time, the kiss slowly slips from her lips and down towards her neck. Eszter closes her eyes and can feel her heart pounding faster and faster. His arms wrap tightly around her, holding her close, but she doesn't fight back.

There is a sharp inhale and a moment between two heartbeats that seems to last an eternity.


	6. Chapter 6

Afterwards Eszter can't remember what being bitten feels like. She wakes up the next morning to Dora's quiet crying and opens her eyes with a frown already on her face. She feels sore and sluggish as she slowly touches her neck that has been bandaged neatly.

"I'm so sorry," Dora keeps muttering. The girl is a nervous wreck and her face is streaked with tears. Eszter clumsily wraps the other girl into a hug and keeps rubbing circles into her back. Dora sobs hard enough to be heard from the library, Eszter knows, but she doesn't try to stop her from crying even if the sun isn't yet far up in the sky to be sure that everyone else is asleep.

It takes a long while for Dora to stop crying. Afterwards her face is blotchy and her eyes completely red. Eszter doesn't really know what to do with herself, so she just busies herself with her hands.

"It's not your fault, really," Eszter tells Dora. The other girl looks like she's going to object, so Eszter hurries to continue. "I've known for a while now that I'm getting closer to the age he feels is appropriate. This could have happened at any time."

"But he wouldn't have hurt you if I didn't try to escape," Dora hiccups. Eszter sighs and runs her fingers through her hair.

"You can't keep thinking about that," Eszter tells Dora harshly. "What's done is done. Surviving here means that you can't second guess your choices. Besides, this," Eszter gestures towards her neck, "barely even feels like anything. If he really wanted it to hurt, he would have made it hurt."

Dora looks doubtful, but Eszter is not going to allow the girl wallow in self pity. There are far more important things to think about, far more dangerous things Dora only has the barest of ideas about. Eszter knows how quickly life can turn sour in the library to those who don't fulfil expectations, and so she's doing everything she can to make Dora survive.

She's never really had a friend there, not before. There's never been anyone she has felt comfortable enough sharing her inner thoughts with, never someone who has opened their heart to her immediately. Everyone else was too suspicious of her.

Eszter can't keep the truth from the others if they want to know it, but there's something comforting in being able to speak your thoughts out loud to someone who doesn't look for any hidden agendas in the words.

Her neck feels a bit stiff as Eszter tests the range of motion. There's barely any pain. The skin just feels tight, that's all. The wound will probably heal on its own. Vlad knows how to be neat about it whenever he feels like it.

"Can I see it?" Dora asks silently. Eszter blinks and then shrugs.

"Sure," she answers. Dora frowns and then carefully takes off the bandage. The girl studies the wound carefully and touches the skin around the two puncture wounds.

"It looks like it would hurt," Dora murmurs. Eszter hums.

"Vlad may have done something to make it a little easier," Eszter guesses. That makes Dora frown even more deeply as she studies Eszter's neck.

"He seems awfully nice to you one moment and the next he'll hurt you just like that," Dora says slowly and then studies Eszter's face. The young woman remains calm under scrutiny. She's trained herself well during all those years.

"He gets easier the longer you know him," Eszter answers. "Getting used to his ways takes a good while, but once that happens and you live according to all the little rules, life here is almost easy at times."

"But don't you miss life outside?" Dora asks with a dangerous fire in her eyes, a desperate lilt to her voice. Eszter lowers her eyes.

"Dora, I didn't have much of a life back then," Eszter tells the girl. "I had barely gotten home from the hospital when he came and took my mother and me. I had been lying in that hospital ward for two and half years at that point. All the friends I had before were gone. The rest of my family probably thinks I'm dead. I was barely able to even walk with the help of crutches. There is no life for me to return to. I don't have anyone waiting for me at home. I may not be dead yet, but to the world, I am."

Dora looks shaken. Eszter only quickly glances at the other girl. Her jaw feels tight. She forces her mouth to relax a little.

"They don't care that I can't walk very well or that my hearing is poor. They don't care if I need a leg brace or not. They care about how well I do my work. Honestly, being here is better for me than going back. I don't want to go back just to end up like before."

Dora starts crying again. Eszter furiously blinks the tears out of her own eyes.

"Don't you really have anything you'd go back for?" Dora asks in a shaky voice. Eszter closes her eyes for a moment and takes in a couple of deep breaths.

"Your life sounds like a dream sometimes," Eszter tells Dora. "Being able to go to school, having friends, walking for hours around Amsterdam and all the cities Europe has to offer. I would do almost anything to ever even have a chance at something like that."

Dora stares at her thickly.

"How long do you have?" she asks. Eszter shakes her head.

"Dora, don't," Eszter asks quietly. "It's better not to get your hopes high. I tried three times. I don't want to think about the price to pay for a fourth attempt."

"How long?" Dora repeats stubbornly. Eszter sighs. She knows a losing battle when she faces one.

"A few months at most. He said before the new year," she says quietly. The end seems closer when she's forced to say it aloud herself. It was easier to hear. Speaking it makes it almost too real.

Dora nods her head seriously and seems to start planning. Eszter can only watch as the other girl grasps at the hope she had given up on long before Dora ever entered her life, and she wonders whether Dora will be able to pull off a miracle or whether they'll both just end up suffering for it.

* * *

Every one of them can tell there is a change in the energy of the house. Florence is the first one of the vampires to notice how Eszter and Dora keep sharing glances with each other, but Matteo and Vlad aren't far behind. They are keeping an eye on them, of course they are, but it seems like they believe the change to just be an after-effect of Eszter being bitten. That should work in their favour, if they do attempt another escape together.

There is something odd inside Eszter as she thinks about leaving the library. She had already given up on hope, had already decided to just accept her faith, but now there is an odd longing she can't really hide even if she tries to. Florence and Matteo don't notice it, but Vlad catches it before long.

Late one night once they have finished working, he draws her into his favoured reading nook. Eszter tries to be calm, but there's an anxiety she can't suppress. Vlad's eyes travel over her form.

"You are different," he notes as he sits down and rests his fingertips against each other. Eszter lowers her eyes. "Nervous, certainly. I wonder if it's only worry about the future."

Eszter blinks slowly and tries to hide her thoughts as well as she can. She glances at the window and tries to think of something to say. The words don't seem to come.

"You aren't planning on anything stupid, are you?" Vlad's voice drawls out. Eszter frowns a little.

"I'm just having a tough time with changing my perspective," she says. It's close enough to the truth but not too obvious. There is the slightest hint of deception, the slightest lie. Eszter hasn't tried lying to his face ever before. She waits for him to call her out on it, but he doesn't. Instead he leans back in his chair and lays a heavy look on her.

There is an uncomfortable silence as he studies her. Eszter keeps her thoughts to herself, keeps a curtain drawn in front of her emotions, and sits in the light of his gaze. There is something different to it this time. Eszter doesn't know why his eyes bother her in a completely new manner, why the man has such an effect on her.

A shiver of nerves runs through Eszter's spine when Vlad gets up and steps closer to her. He offers his hand to her, and Eszter has no choice but to take it and let the man help her stand up. Her leg feels better than before, a little stronger and a little less stiff, and there is a new kind of clarity Eszter has during the nights, but that is nothing compared to the electric current she feels on her skin as Vlad stands so nearby.

His fingers brush a stray curl behind an ear and barely even touch her cheek, but it leaves behind a tingling sensation. His eyes reach hers.

"You know you belong here, don't you?" he murmurs to her. Eszter swallows and nods her head just the slightest hint.

"I know," she murmurs back. He still looks at her for a moment as she coyly lowers her eyes, but then he steps back and lets her breathe freely once again.

He doesn't say anything as Eszter limps back into their wing, but she knows that they must leave soon, maybe even sooner than she could have even imagined.

* * *

 

Another long night ends with the gate to their wing getting locked and the impending morning coming closer and closer. Eszter sits in the common room looking at the sunrise while Dora is in her room, pretending to get ready for bed. The door to the other room is cracked just a little so Dora can hear better, but they have agreed that half an hour after the sunrise Eszter will pick the lock and they will make their attempt.

Eszter still isn't sure if Vlad is aware of the plan or not. They whispered it to each other yesterday when the sun was its highest while sitting in a spot of sunshine. They have no idea if someone heard the hurried words or the instructions Eszter gave Dora, but the young woman knows they need to leave this morning, or they will never do it. Each night is another night of crumbling confidence and doubts. Each night is a risk of getting caught.

They have just this one chance. Eszter is not going to blow it.

The sun rises. Eszter keeps nervously glancing at the clock. They have no money nor anything to use as a payment, so they'll just have to be cunning. Eszter isn't above stealing if it comes to that. After all, they'll already be stealing a car.

Eszter knows where the phone lines are. Even if she hasn't exactly been planning anything all these years, she's kept her eyes open and noticed anything that could be of use one day.

The half hour passes too slowly yet far too quickly. Eszter gets up and moves to the gate as Dora comes out of her room. There is a moment of nervousness as Eszter twists the lock and waits whether she can still pick it or not, but the tongue slips and the gate swings open.

The garage door is locked. Eszter picks it open and cuts the phone line, and then takes the car keys. Dora is already sitting on the front seat with a book of European maps in her lap.

It's been years since Eszter stole the car, so she drives slowly and carefully as she gets used to the feeling again. They aren't going too quick, but there is a good chance they'll get further than the town. Dora is already flipping through the pages, trying to find something that would be alike what they see.

Eszter chooses a road on random and starts following the signs away from the closest town. She keeps nervously tapping at the wheel, but the longer she drives, the easier it gets. The harsh mountain roads force her to get over her fears, and within an hour, driving no longer feels like a constant panic.

It takes them almost three hours to find their way to a city big enough they can find on the map. They stop for a moment to read it and to figure out where exactly they need to go. Dora wants to make their way onto the railways, but there is still enough fuel in the car to travel for quite some distance. Eszter slowly draws out a route to a somewhat smaller city further north.

"They won't be looking for us in the smaller places," she tells Dora as she wonders how exactly they are going to get enough money for train tickets or how they are going to be able to cross the border. They'll probably have to travel all the way through Germany before they'll even think about getting into the Netherlands just to avoid any further border crossings. It's too risky to get caught by the police.

They'll be expected in Amsterdam and the nearest large cities, but once they've made their way far enough, they can survive.

Out of Eszter's insistence they ditch the car in the next city and hitchhike to the town with the railway station. Dora's German is passable, but they still get some odd looks from the old farmer who picks them up. Eszter almost feels guilty for stealing his wallet before remembering what might happen if they don't get on the first train. The day is already half over. They don't have long until the chase truly begins.

Dora looks uneasy as Eszter pays the tickets and as they get on the first train towards north, but Eszter doesn't allow that to bother her. She stares out of the window as Dora sleeps. She can rest now. The night is a completely different story.

* * *

 

The truck driver who allows them into his cabin doesn't really speak but instead stares at the road. He's a gruff man with a rough exterior, but Eszter has gotten good enough with reading body language to know that the man won't perhaps be pleasant, but at least he won't hurt them.

The autobahn is quiet this time of night and Dora is sleeping off the long day, but Eszter doesn't dare close her eyes. She keeps an eye on the man, just to be sure. There's never telling what strangers might want. There's never telling what they might be planning on.

"Awfully long way to travel without any luggage," he says. Eszter shrugs.

"Our stuff got stolen along the way," she easily answers. The driver hums. They are quiet for a few miles and then he speaks again.

"Did you say you were sisters?"

"Cousins."

"You don't really look alike."

"You seem awfully curious." Eszter glances at the man quickly but then focuses on the road ahead. The man huffs half a laugh.

"It's just odd to get someone like you two hitching a ride," he says and taps at the wheel. "If it was the summer, I wouldn't be as curious. You see a lot of people then, but during the winter it's just a few types."

Eszter checks that Dora is still asleep.

"We got into a bit of trouble," she says. "We're trying to get back to some family. This is the easiest way, really."

"Couldn't you just phone them to send you some money for tickets?" the man asks curiously. Eszter snorts.

"Not really," she says.

The silence continues for many miles. Staring at the passing lights is almost hypnotic in a way. The autobahn stretches on, and the truck will soon turn to its next destination. Soon they'll have to figure out how to continue onward. In two days, they've almost made their way to the border of the Netherlands. With a little luck, they may see Dora's family tomorrow.

Eszter hasn't slept in three days by now, but she's not letting herself rest before they've either reached their destination or gotten caught. Getting used to living without her meds at least helps a little with that. Her leg's aching worse than ever, and her headache can't be just from the lack of sleep.

The truck moves to the right lane and then slips onto the off ramp. The driver seems to be thinking about something.

"I'll try to see if there are any people heading towards the Netherlands at the stop. Let your cousin sleep for a little while," the man suggests. Eszter thinks about it for a moment and then nods her head. She isn't sure whether she wants that to happen. She'll most likely wake Dora as soon as they stop, just in case.

There's a bunch of truckers at the gas station. Eszter gently nudges at Dora's leg. The girl blinks her eyes blearily open and frowns.

"Are we there already?" she yawns widely. The trucker hums as he stops the engine.

"Come on," Eszter tells Dora. "We might catch another lift still."

Eszter accepts a cigarette from one of the truckers as they stand in the circle of light. Her fingers are shaking and it's so noticeable that some of the truckers joke that she must really need a few more fags if the withdrawal really is that bad. Eszter laughs it off, but Dora seems worried as she breathes in the smoke and tries to calm her nerves as their trucker goes around asking where the others are heading to.

They find another lift, but they'll be leaving only in the morning. Eszter and Dora share a quick look with each other.

"There's an all-night cafe nearby," one of the truckers say, "if you want to wait inside and catch a bite."

"Yeah, that would probably be great," Eszter says distractedly while looking into the dark. It almost feels like something is staring back. A small shiver runs down her spine.

They go to the cafe and sit there until the morning starts to win over the sky, and then they jump into another truck cabin and head towards the Netherlands.

They're almost there. They are almost free.

* * *

The worst part of waiting is knowing that once the train leaves the station, they'll almost certainly get to Amsterdam. Dora is twitchy and can't stop glancing around. Eszter is more level-headed and keeps carefully studying the platform. She knows Vlad must have his vassals keeping an eye on the trains, but they really don't have another choice. It's the easiest way for them to slip in unnoticed. Sure, someone may be keeping an eye on the stations, but they already have a plan. They've got some new clothes, bought with stolen money, and they'll get off at separate stations. Dora will make her way to her father's favourite coffee shop close to wherever he works while Eszter goes and checks the house. If no one arrives within an hour, Dora will find help somewhere else.

Finally, the train leaves the station and Eszter lets out a small sigh of relief. She hasn't seen anyone familiar on the station, but that still doesn't mean they're on safe waters. One of Vlad's followers could board the train closer to Amsterdam, could recognise them even though Dora has covered her hair with a fashionable scarf. Eszter can't hide the crutches, but she's ready to take the risk that someone will catch her on the way to the house by a channel.

They sit in the same carriage, but far enough to not be associated with each other. Dora will walk her way to the cafe and Eszter will take a taxi from the further station. That should give both a chance.

Eszter keeps glancing out of the window while counting the stations. Dora is sensible enough not to glance at her direction too often, but there is a noticeable nervous energy in the girl. The other passengers may not notice it as clearly as Eszter does, but they're not blind either. Eszter worries whether they'll truly make it even to Amsterdam if Dora can't act more inconspicuous.

It's odd to be around so many people again. For the past ten years, the library has been Eszter's whole life. She's already travelled further than she ever did in her life before the library, has seen much more than she could expect. Now, she might even see one of the old cities of Europe. Now, she might see all the paintings she has read about, may have a life she never thought she would have.

There's something bitter in that thought, something Eszter is too tired to think about after being awake for such a long time.

The stations pass by and Eszter gets up and steps off the train. There's a rush of people heading her way, and Eszter doesn't make it off the platform before the train leaves again. She slowly makes her way outside and then looks around for taxi. The wintry wind chills her bones, and she shivers as she rakes her eyes down the street.

Her eyes catch a familiar face on the other side of the street just as she flags a car down. She quickly gets in and hopes that she wasn't recognised as she gives the address in a shaky voice.

Amsterdam is nothing like Eszter has known before. She keeps glancing out the window as the car gets as close as it can to the house. It's still a small walking distance to it, but Eszter gladly pays the fare and then starts trudging her way up the street as quickly as she can.

She knocks on the door loudly and waits nervously. The street is quiet. Few are out during the middle of the week and before work lets out for the day, but the door is opened by a kindly-faced woman.

"Can I help you?" she asks Dora in Dutch.

"Is this the house Paul lives in?" she asks in her accented English and quickly takes in the woman. The woman nods. "Is he at home? I have something important to tell him."

"Yes, he's home. Who should I tell is asking?"

Eszter blinks and draws up a blank for a moment.

"I'm a friend of Dora's. We met at the library."

The door is closed and Eszter waits nervously outside. The housekeeper must have been instructed to not let anyone in. Barely a minute passes by before the door is opened violently and Eszter is presented with two harried figures. She blinks owlishly and takes in the two faces. She can see Dora in the features before her.

"The library?" Paul demands her. "Which one?"

"The one that got moved from Bulgaria," Eszter says. The woman, Helen, steps closer to her with a threatening look on her face.

"Where is our daughter?" she demands. Eszter swallows.

"In Paul's favourite cafe," she says. "The one close to where you work. She didn't give me any other details, just in case."

"Who are you?" Paul asks her quietly, as if not believing her. Eszter's leg is starting to get tired.

"My name is Eszter," she says, "and I was the librarian."

There is a rush as Paul and Helen quickly pull on heavy coats and force her to walk between them towards some cafe nearby. Eszter is almost dead on her feet as they get closer. She looks at the people and meets Dora's eyes for a small moment. Dora is up and rushing towards them the moment she sees them.

Paul wraps his daughter into a tight hug, but Helen is not far behind. Eszter sits down on a chair and lays her head down in her hands. Her headache is so bad she is starting to see double.

"Eszter? You okay?" Dora asks somewhere from the hug. Eszter glances up and blinks slowly.

"I need about three days of sleep and so much tea you could drown England in it," she says. Dora laughs lighter than Eszter has ever heard her laugh. There are tears in her eyes.

"Come one, let's go home," Dora tells her parents. It takes Eszter a while to gather enough energy to get up and to start walking back towards the house by the channel. Paul and Helen don't seem to believe it is real, don't seem to believe Dora is back, and Eszter feels horribly out of place.

The housekeeper drops the plate and the drying towel once they step inside the house. There's a rabid stream of English as the woman comes closer and smothers Dora in another hug. The girl has started to cry, but Eszter knows it's just from relief.

They made it. She got Dora back to her parents.

Eszter doses off for a moment in the wingback chair in the library as the family goes to the kitchen and talks to each other. When they enter the room, Eszter blearily opens her eyes and accepts the cup of tea with shaking hands. Dora suddenly seems worried.

"What's wrong?" Dora asks. Eszter takes a sip and tries to form a coherent thought.

"Withdrawal", she says and rubs her temples. Dora bites her lip.

It's been just over three days since they left. Eszter could really use some rest and painkillers, but the tea helps a little.

Dora is quick to go back to the kitchen and come back with a bottle of painkillers. Eszter takes a couple and downs them with a sip of tea. Paul and Helen keep glancing her way.

"How did you get away?" Helen asks. Eszter closes her eyes as Dora starts explaining their great escape. Eszter must fall asleep, because the next time she opens her eyes, it's dark in the room. For a second Eszter has no clue where she is and is about to ask when she hears Dora's familiar voice nearby. She gets up and limps towards the voice.

The kitchen is a cheery room with a lot of life. Paul, Helen, and Dora are eating by a worn table, and Dora is the first to notice Eszter. Her face lights up.

"Are you hungry?" Dora asks. The table is heavy with all kinds of delicacies Eszter hasn't eaten in years. There are even some foods she doesn't recognise. As she takes a seat, Paul and Helen share a glance with each other.

"Thank you," Paul says, voice heavy with emotion. Eszter lifts her eyes from all the food.

"It wasn't all altruistic, you know," she tells with a dry voice. Paul gives a watery smile.

"Nevertheless, thank you."

Eszter nods her head and slowly cuts a small piece of cake. She studies it curiously for a long moment before lifting a small bite to her lips. The taste is even better than she remembered. A smile rises to Eszter's lips as she catches Dora's grin.

Eszter eats slowly to not make herself sick and gives some insights into the conversation. Dora and her parents seem to have already talked through most, but they have many questions Dora doesn't know the answers to. Eszter listens to their questions and hesitates a bit.

"I don't know if it's safe to tell much about the library," she says slowly. Dora is immediately on edge.

"Did something happen?" she demands. Eszter hums.

"I'm not that sure," she confesses. "I thought I might have seen a familiar face, but I only met her once or twice before."

Dora looks pensive as she nods her head. The girl glances at her parents, who have suddenly gotten a lot paler and a lot tenser. They have been incredibly happy to have gotten their daughter back, but now they seem to realise that the danger is simply not over quite yet. There is still a risk that they will be stolen back from Amsterdam.

"Should we leave?" Paul asks. Eszter weights on the words for a moment.

"I honestly don't think that will make much of a difference," she says. "Vlad might want to lay low for a while. How are you going to explain Dora's return?"

They haven't talked about it at all through their travel across Europe. Dora blinks and seems to realise that she has been missing for months. Her return is going to cause some rippling effects no matter what they do.

"We could just go to the police," Dora suggests, but she sounds unsure. Eszter frowns.

"I'm probably legally dead," she says. "At least I think he faked my mother's death, so adding another body wouldn't be that difficult."

"Is there any way to check?" Helen asks Eszter. She shrugs.

"If you know of any library that would have newspapers from Debrecen from ten years ago, then it could be possible. I really don't want to go to the police and try to prove it that way."

Eszter has never spoken of Debrecen or her life before with Dora, but now the girl seems curious.

"Wouldn't the folks at the hospital recognise you, or your family?" Dora suggests. Eszter shakes her head.

"I am _not_ going back to the hospital or dragging anyone else into this mess," she says vehemently. Dora blinks back. The depth of anger has come as a surprise.

Eszter will never go back to that hospital. She laid there for so many months, almost died there. The hospital was much worse than the library ever could have been. As for her family, she knows it's better to let them think she is dead. She doesn't want them to go through the loss twice.

They are quiet for a long while as they ponder about what they should say to the police or whether they should say anything at all.

Eszter can't tell them what to do. She is more lost than anyone else. She doesn't know that world, doesn't know their situation, doesn't know what kinds of risks they are willing to take. All she knows is that she can't return to life as it once was, can't slip back into the slot she used to fit. All she knows is that that life is now gone.

Perhaps it never existed at all.

 


	7. Chapter 7

Dora's life slips so quickly back into what it used to be that it's almost painful to see. The library is quickly washed from her skin and she blooms in a way Eszter never has, just bursts into life once she gets used to the rhythm of Amsterdam. Eszter watches as their family knits back together, as Dora learns to know her mother, as she takes another role. Dora has never been an adult, not in the same way, but now there is a new maturity in her. Eszter can hardly fault her for growing up so much in the library, but it's hard to watch as Dora seems to forget all about it so quickly.

Eszter can't. She tries to return to as she used to be, tries to become someone else, but something just feels wrong. Going out with Dora into the cafes or visiting the museums feels fine if she doesn't think about it, but there is something always just a little wrong in those moments. Getting to talk with Paul and Helen is nice, learning Dutch is fine, but Eszter notices that she doesn't quite belong to their small family. They have made room for her, certainly, but she isn't in on all the minute details, doesn't know when to laugh at jokes.

The worst is that she misses her library. She misses all the rows of books, all the nuggets of knowledge she picked up from them, the lazy moments lounging in her favourite chair. She misses her small garden and the afternoon moments spent in them, misses the sunlight high up on the mountains. The sea holds nothing to the mountains she has gotten so used to constantly seeing. The sea is a great unknown, something she had never seen before but had wished to have seen, but there is something wrong even in those thoughts.

The sea should mean travelling far from home with her parents, a holiday at the Mediterranean, not the canal outside the house in Amsterdam. The sea should mean summer days and not winter evenings that fade away so quickly.

Eszter finds the announcement of her and her mother's deaths soon enough. She no longer exists in any records, cannot take back what she used to have, and there is something sad about the fact that she doesn't even mourn it. Sure, she does miss some things about her childhood, but most of it already feels like a distant dream. The time she spent in the hospital already faded those memories. The years in the library changed her enough that she knows she couldn't live like that anymore.

Vlad was right when he said that she belonged to the library. Eszter admits that to herself one rainy afternoon as she sits by the window and tries to imagine what must be going on back in her library. Matteo and Florence will be working on books, or perhaps they are somewhere out there looking for new ones.

Eszter has tried to grow used to the many libraries of Amsterdam, but nothing can hold a candle to Vlad's collection. So many books have gone missing in the public collections, so many books have been forgotten. Some of the texts may only exist in Vlad's collection.

Giving that up is perhaps the hardest thing about it all. Eszter can fake fitting in, can pretend to be a cousin of Dora's that has come to live with them, but it is still a hollow imitation of the real her. She wears long enough skirts to at least hide away the leg brace, pushes her anxiety behind a smile. Nothing can make the crutches disappear, but when she sits, she keeps them as hidden as she can, as if she was like everybody else.

Eszter quickly wipes away the tears and takes in a calming breath. Paul is so enthralled with his work that he hasn't had time to notice. Dora and Helen are somewhere out there, working on their relationship. Paul works a lot from home, much more than what Eszter imagined based on all the trivial things Dora used to tell back at the library. Perhaps the man is trying to have some more time with his family. Perhaps he is afraid that they will disappear again.

Sometimes there are familiar faces on the streets of Amsterdam, faces Eszter knows that Vlad knows she will remember. It's his way of reminding her that he is keeping an eye on them, that he eventually decides what will happen to them. It's his way of telling them that he can decide what happens, that he holds the power to take them back the moment he so wishes.

Eszter hasn't told anyone else of the faces she recognises, not after they arrived. It would just cause undue worry for Paul and Helen. They already have enough on their plates with trying to make their relationship work. They already worry enough about the nights Dora wakes them all up with her screaming.

Those nights Eszter is the only one who can calm Dora down. Those nights they sit quietly under the covers and talk about the library, but never mention it. It's like a passing nightmare to Dora. It still haunts her in a way her parents can never understand, but the nightmares come less and less often. Perhaps in a few years Dora will have bounced back and the library seems like a passing nightmare rather than a constant ache in her soul.

Eszter doesn't have nightmares of the library, but she dreams about it every single night. She dreams of the rows and rows of books, she dreams of the view from her garden, and she dreams of the man whose collection she had the honour to curate.

There is no one Eszter can speak of those dreams to, and she knows it. Her found family would never understand what she thinks of the man, would never understand why she sometimes wakes up in the middle of the night with her heart almost pounding through her chest and her lips tingling with a memory of a kiss.

It's better to keep that as a secret. They wouldn't understand.

* * *

 

Paul is a serious man with a dry sense of humour, but Eszter takes a liking to him. There is a calmness in him that is the result of years of diplomacy. The man seems to understand that Eszter needs that careful approach rather than the straightforward attempts his wife keeps making. Dora and Eszter may have shared a time at the library, but Paul seems to sense that there are many things Eszter has left unsaid.

It is one of those mornings when Dora has already left for school and Helen has slipped away to work on her research. Paul is sitting by the table calmly and sips on coffee while reading the morning news. Eszter still has trouble getting used to being awake during the days and sleeping during the nights, but it's slowly starting to get easier. Perhaps in a few more months it will feel natural and not like a temporary change.

"Do you know how you'll be punished if he picks you up again?" Paul asks. Eszter glances at the man and sees that he must have been thinking about it for weeks already. There is a worried crease on his face, something that is missing on Dora and Helen's faces. The two seem to still be in the belief that Vlad isn't keeping a careful eye on their mismatch family.

"He said he'd make sure I never walked again," Eszter says calmly and catches Paul off guard. She hesitates for a moment. "Last time he killed my mother."

"Your mother?" he prompts silently. Eszter leans back on her chair and pauses to think. The words Vlad said after her third escape attempt are very clear in her memory, but it's much harder to think about what they really mean now that she has left again.

"He originally took in my mother," Eszter explains. "She researched medical history and studied various plagues around Vlad's time. I don't know exactly what she discovered, but it must have happened during the time I spent at the hospital, because I had been home barely a week when they came."

She had been resting in her room when it got too quiet in their little home. At first she had just thought nothing of it, but something had made her get up and make her way into the living room where her mother was supposed to be. Instead she came face to face with Vlad.

"I only saw her a couple of times after that day. I kept her in check, and every time I tried to escape Vlad punished my mother alongside me. Last time he killed her, but I don't think it was just because of me. I think she didn't really adapt to that life."

Paul studies her face.

"You don't seem distressed about that," he notes. Eszter shakes her head.

"She stopped being my mother years ago, maybe even before I got sick," she says. "She rarely visited me in the hospital. Her research consumed her completely during the time I spent at the ward."

Paul nods his head and seems to understand why Eszter doesn't feel sorry for her mother's fate, whatever it is. He does, however, seem to ponder on her words.

"The few of us who are parents should really study our priorities," he says. Eszter shrugs. She doesn't really have anything to tell Paul. She doesn't blame him for being curious or wanting to explore the mystery laid in front of him. She doesn't blame her mother for drowning her sorrows in research just as much as she doesn't blame her father for leaving her mother. Those things just happened.

They are quiet for quite some time as Paul finishes his newspaper and starts getting ready to leave for work. Eszter accepts the paper and starts browsing through the news. Her tongue still feels stiff when speaking Dutch, but she can read it quite well already.

"What was it really like there?" Paul asks. He hesitates with the words. Dora has talked about her truth, her experience, but Paul isn't asking about that experience. No, he wants to know how Eszter sees that time, and that makes her wonder if the man can sense something about all the thoughts she tries to keep hidden. Perhaps her face shows that thought, since the man continues, "I just wondered because you seem to have a hard time getting used to life here."

Paul has no idea how right he truly is. Eszter purses her lips.

"Mostly, life there was surprisingly easy," she says and seems to surprise Paul. "It was a very different type of life than my childhood or what life is here, but not that much worse. There were tough times, of course there were, but mostly it was quite easy to predict. I liked the work, we could read anything we wanted to, and once I got used to all the said and unspoken rules, it was very predictable."

"Do you miss it?" Paul asks her. Eszter lowers her eyes.

"I miss the collection and the fact that they paid no mind to what I was like," she says quietly. "I was a human, they not. It was already a big enough difference to them that everything else flew under the radar."

Paul seems to understand what she means even though Eszter isn't sure if she can even put that feeling into words. It's not easy to talk about the library without longing colouring her voice. It's not easy to pretend like she is happy with her life in Amsterdam. Something just doesn't feel right there, and Eszter can't put that emotion into words. Something back in the library made her belong in a way she doesn't belong here.

"Would you have attempted another escape if it wasn't for Dora?" Paul asks. Eszter laughs hollowly.

"Never," she says. "I was at peace with my mortality. Dora made me realise how much I was missing. It was only the combination of being given a deadline and Dora's homesickness that made me even think of one final attempt."

Paul swallows, but he accepts the answer. It wasn't a selfless decision that gave him his daughter back, but it was enough. He could have very easily lost his daughter for all eternity. He's only glad he got her back at all.

* * *

 

That spring night is unseasonably warm as Eszter pulls the window open before sitting down by the dressing table. She opens the end of her braid and starts working through the knots in the hair as she hums quietly to herself. The others are at one party or another, have been for a few good hours already, but this is another one of those nights she has trouble finding her way to bed at a reasonable hour.

There is a slightly colder breeze of air that travels down her spine. Eszter runs her fingers through her hair and is about to pick up the brush when another hand takes it. Eszter flinches and her eyes make it to the mirror to see the image of a man she recognises immediately.

"It's not nice to sneak up on someone," she chastises Vlad. The man looks unimpressed as he takes her hair and starts working the brush through it.

"It's also not very nice to sneak out in the middle of the day," he says pointedly. His hands are gentle as they work on her hair. Eszter relaxes a little and starts working on the straps of her leg brace.

He brushes through her hair surprisingly gently and then lays the brush down where it was. Eszter opens the final strap and frees her leg from the brace. There is slight tingling where the skin has been squeezed. Eszter doesn't even really acknowledge them as she rolls down the sock on that leg, then the other one. Vlad stands just behind her, close enough that she brushes against him occasionally.

There is not much to say. Eszter can only wonder why the man has come now and not all those times before when she has been expecting him. Maybe he wanted her to be surprised. Maybe he just waited for a night when she decided to open the window and let in the air.

"How have you liked Amsterdam?" he asks once she's done. Eszter straightens her back and meets his eyes in the mirror. His face is difficult to read, but he doesn't seem mad at her, not at least too badly.

"It's everything I expected and nothing at all like I thought it would be," she answers as honestly as she can. Vlad raises an eyebrow. Eszter turns around on the stool and looks up at the man before getting up on her other leg. He offers her a hand for support as she hops the short distance between the bed and the dressing table. She sits down on the comforter and looks at him expectantly.

"You've hidden it quite well," he notes as he crosses his arms. Vlad remains cool and collected. There isn't much Eszter could say to him, so she just shrugs and glances out the open window.

His hand is cool as he raises her chin up a little. Eszter looks at him, unimpressed.

"Do what you want, but stop looming over me," she tells him. Vlad looks amused as he sits down next to her on the bed. Eszter scoots over a little and rests her back against the wall and straightens out her leg.

"I would have thought you would not say something like that after the last time," he murmurs. Eszter takes in a deep breath. Those memories are vivid even after so many nights of dreaming. Vlad seems to notice her hesitation, since he seems suddenly extremely interested.

"Have you been thinking about that, Eszter?" he asks her. She attempts a nonchalant shrug, but it probably falls short. He's always has an almost supernatural sense when it comes to sensing her mood or when she's trying to conceal the truth.

"And if I have?"

His eyes are amused even if the face remains otherwise still. Vlad leans in closer and breathes in her scent. Eszter remains flushed to the wall and tries to calm herself down.

"What if they come back?" she asks, suddenly worried. Vlad face turns just a little so that his lips are almost against her ear.

"There is a lock on the door," he whispers to her. Eszter glances uncertainly at it. Could it hold?

When she worriedly whispers the question back at him, he only chuckles.

"You'll just have to remain quiet, then," he answers and slowly kisses her neck. There is nothing innocent in that kiss. It lingers on her skin and makes her face flush with blood, makes her heart beat faster and faster. Instead of breaking her skin, the kiss moves upwards until he meets her lips.

Eszter is light-headed when he gives her a short break for a couple of quick breaths. She looks at him uncertainly. His thumb traces the curve of her face as she slowly raises her hand and studies his face with her fingertips. His skin is cool, worn to odd smoothness. Eszter meets his eyes for a fleeting moment before leaning closer and kissing him.

It's such an odd thing how being so close to him makes her feel so alive. His skin is cool to the touch, everything about him should feel wrong, but his lips sate the hunger inside her. It's almost dizzying how easy and right that feels. It's almost nerve-wracking how her skin doesn't shiver with fear but with anticipation as his hand slips underneath her shirt.

"I really don't think that is the smartest idea," she says as she lays her hand over his. Vlad's eyes track the movement and push against the fabric. He is clearly thinking about it, clearly wondering whether he should or not.

"That doesn't mean you would stop me even if I did," he mutters back. Eszter swallows and doesn't even bother pretending that he isn't right.

They sit like that for a moment, his hand on her waist and the moment of doubt hanging heavy between them. They both know there is no going back if he lets his hand roam her bare skin. Once before Eszter stopped him, but that was such a long time ago that it almost feels like a different age. She is different, perhaps not quite ready to be changed, but she wouldn't stop him now. No, just the thought of it curls a small strand of disappointment in her stomach.

She's slow in her movements as she slides a bit closer to him and turns as much as she can. Her hands shake as she unbuttons her shirt and lets it fall from her shoulders. His fingers are gentle as they help remove the piece of clothing and reveal the chemise underneath.

Vlad is patient as he relieves the buttons of her skirt. He presses slow, lingering kisses down her neck and makes her shiver until her skirt is off as well.

Eszter feels a lot more vulnerable with only her chemise on, but there is nothing she can do but push that feeling aside. His hands are already trailing down her sides. Shivers of cold and pleasure travel down her spine as he trails a few more kisses down her neck before helping her turn around. There is a hunger in his eyes that scares Eszter a little.

"Would you scream if I bit you?" he murmurs and rests his hand against the thin skin on her neck. Eszter blinks and studies the hunger on his face. It is under control still, but for how long?

"And risk anyone else getting hurt?" she answers. "You could have hurt me last time, but you didn't. If you wanted me dead, you could have easily snapped my neck without me being any wiser."

"I still could," he says and squeezes her throat just a little to be noticeable. Eszter breathes slowly. He's not crushing her windpipe, but he's making it much more difficult to take in a breath.

Their eyes meet. Eszter remains calm even with the threat laid harsh against her throat and he keeps studying her face. Eventually he bends closer and kisses her, his hand remaining in its place. Slowly it eases up a bit. Breath travels slightly more easily into her lungs and out again.

His kisses linger and slide down lower until they reach the two pale dots on her neck. Eszter shivers a little.

“Vlad?" she whispers. The man doesn't remove himself from her neck, but at least he stops for a moment. “Please don't bite me anywhere they can see. Please."

“Haven't you told them how I've been keeping an eye on you?" he murmurs against her skin and then straightens himself to study her face. Eszter shakes her head mutely and watches the man uneasily. Vlad seems surprised. “I would have thought you would let them know."

“There's nothing they could do," she answers. “I didn't want them to worry about something they couldn't change in any case."

He nods his head. It's as much as Eszter could have even hoped for. They stare at each other for a long while, but eventually lets her body relax. Vlad takes that as some sort of a sign, since he lays her body to lie on the bed. Eszter glances at the open window and feels the cool wind on her skin as Vlad settles next to her. He could easily overpower her, could force her body underneath his, but Eszter knows that he wouldn't do so. He thinks that's distasteful.

He plays with a strand of her hair and then moves the rest of the coppery curtain from covering her neck. She has gained weight, has filled out now that food is plentiful, but her collarbones are still sharp as he kisses between them and slides her chemise up her thighs until it rests just above her hips. His hand finally slips underneath and Eszter shivers in pleasure. The touch explores her skin underneath the cotton, learns the contours of her body. Vlad's hand doesn't stray toward her crotch nor does it rise any higher to touch her breasts. The closest it gets are the ribs on her sides that he counts with his fingertips.

“So eager yet so very, very young and very, very innocent," he murmurs. Eszter has to collect her thoughts for a few seconds before she can even think of an answer.

“I'm not completely oblivious," she breathes. “I know how these things work."

He looks amused.

“I do not think you're quite ready for that yet," he murmurs and then lays a long, lingering kiss on her neck. It is the only warning she gets before a sharp nick makes her take in a sharp breath. Her head feels dizzy as he sucks on her skin and caresses her body with his other hand.

It's easy for Vlad to ease her down onto the bed and to let her catch her breath with her eyes closed. Eszter feels tired to the bone as he caresses her neck and inspects the bitemarks clinically. Eszter catches his eye after a moment.

“Do dream of me, Eszter," he tells her and kisses her forehead. “Perhaps next time you will be ready for everything."

Eszter's eyes slip closed as she falls into a deep, unnatural slumber. She only wakes once the sun shines on her face. Her bleary eyes catch the almost closed window. Her sheets have been tossed and turned. Eszter pulls herself into a sitting position and glances at the mirror.

There are new marks on her neck. She touches them slowly, feels them with the tips of her fingers, and then she slowly touches her lips.

She can still feel his taste on them. Eszter takes in a couple of calming breaths before forcing herself to get up and making herself look even somewhat presentable.

No one else sees the bitemark, but Eszter feels it every time fabric rubs against it, feels it reminding her of the night he entered her room and she remembers how he has now bitten her twice.


	8. Chapter 8

After that night Eszter starts to look at Amsterdam differently. She starts memorising all its nooks and crannies, starts creating a mental map of all the fun-looking buildings and the museum floors she travels. Often, she sits by paintings for an hour or two and studies them in detail, trying to learn every smallest detail. One of those studies ends up with her noticing the otherwise empty room and an old book left next to her.

Eszter takes it carefully into her lap. The book opens right in the middle and reveals a beautiful yet uncanny woodcut of a dragon. Eszter studies it for a moment before leafing through the rest of the pages. At first, she thinks the dragon is the only thing in the book, but there is writing in sophisticated strokes on the very last page. The handwriting is regular and sharp, not at all like her round letters. She recognises it immediately. Eszter studies the letters written in rovásírás for a while before she can first translate them into spoken word inside her head.

_It's time to for you to return by next autumn._

She traces the words written in her native tongue slowly and wonders whether she should show this to Dora, Paul, and Helen.

The way back to the house is slow and it's almost dinnertime when Eszter arrives. She's noticed that Helen and Paul are planning for something, something extremely important, but she hasn't been paying it too much mind. After all, her years at the library taught her that sometimes it's much better to just not ask, and even though the situation is much different, Eszter still struggles with all the expectations of Amsterdam compared to those of the library. She could navigate her life back there with her eyes blindfolded, but here she should act completely against her instincts. Nothing proves it better than the mismatch group of humans she comes back to after a day she has spent at the museum.

The group is odd, but there is a familiarity between all of them that Eszter notices at first glance. She stands at the door to the room and looks at everyone carefully. There is a tanned man and a woman that must be his wife, as they share a closeness that cannot be anything but familiarity of such a relationship. There is also a man, greying and academic, who sits by the window with a sharp look in his eyes. Eszter also notices a boy, perhaps a little younger than herself, who has attached himself to Dora.

"Everyone, this is Eszter, the one who managed to get away," Helen introduces her as soon as she notices the redheaded young woman standing by the empty doorframe. Eszter limps into the room with a continuing careful study of the guests.

The man at the window gets up and comes to shake her hand.

"Hugh James," he tells her with a calm smile on his lips. Eszter takes his warm hand and shakes it.

"Vörös Eszter," she answers equally calmly. Soon after, the other strange man comes to introduce himself as Turgut Bora and the woman who turns out to be his wife. Dora brings the youngest gentleman around. He turns out to be one Stephen Barley.

Eszter doesn't have to be a genius to understand what the one common unifying agent among all of them is. She settles down as easily as she can on one of the wingback chairs and lays her crutches down with care.

"So, this is what you've been planning on," she notes dryly as she looks at Paul and Helen. They smile. They have no idea of how uneasy Eszter feels among them all. The book inside her bag almost feels like it's ready to burn a hole into the canvas, but instead Eszter keeps her calmness and waits for them to speak first.

"We have heard much about the woman who managed to survive at the library for nine years," Turgut Bora says with respect in his voice. Eszter hums calmly and folds her hands into her lap. They don't know her, she has to remind herself, and thus they can't read her body the same way Vlad could read it with just a glance. It's important to not let them know everything, but she also knows that they seem to be expecting her to tell them all about the library.

"Almost ten years, but who even counts?" she smiles as sweetly as she can. There is a hardness in her that makes the smile seem bitter. "You either learn to accept whatever comes with that life or then you throw yourself off the cliff, and I've never fancied heights that much."

Dora snorts. She at least seems to appreciate Eszter's ironic approach to her time at the library. The others bristle at her words. Eszter knows they had expected her to be meeker, to be something completely different. They don't know that Vlad is most interested in those who manage to keep their own minds after all the things he will put them through.

"What do you wish to know?" Eszter asks and leans back. They all seem curious. Hugh James is the first to speak.

"Dora said you had tried escaping from there before this attempt," he starts and then stops. Eszter sighs.

"The first attempt was a year in," she tells them in a bored tone. "I waited long enough that they eased up the security a bit, then broke the locks and stole the car. I would have made it had I not crashed bad enough that the police got called and I was taken into a clinic."

"Hold on, the crash was that bad?" Dora asks with an edge of nerves in her voice. Eszter snorts.

"He told me there was no point in beating me up after that attempt as I had done so myself," Eszter tells Dora. Her eyebrows rise high. Eszter hurries to continue before anyone has the time to stop her.

"The second attempt was a few months after that. That time, I didn't even get to the nearest village. One of his human followers happened to come across me as I was getting down, and there was a bit of scuffle. Got another punishment, decided to calm down and take my time. The third time was about a year after that. Once that went wrong, he killed my mother and told me the next time he'd make sure I'd never run again, or most likely _walk_ if I know him at all."

Dora seems horrified. Eszter has never told the girl the price to pay for a third attempt, and too late she realises how it may seem to the girl. After all, she has just gotten her mother back. After all, she still probably wants to learn to know her better, wants to keep her.

"That sounds like a hard life," Turgut Bora says delicately. His wife seems horrified, though Eszter has the feeling that maybe she hasn't understood everything. Eszter shrugs and glances out the window.

"Outside the punishments it wasn't that bad," Eszter tells with a shrug. "Things got easier around the four-year mark after they were certain I wasn't going to try anything again. Florence was nice most of the time, and Matteo didn't dare do anything too stupid. The others knew that if they messed up things bad enough, at best they would never be invited back and at worst they'd end up with a wooden pole where the sun shouldn't shine."

"And how many did?" Stephen Barley asks curiously. Eszter laughs a little.

"Do you know how many people you have to do that to to get called Impaler?" she answers back. The others seem taken back that Eszter is comfortable enough joking around something that horrible. "But to answer your question, just one. His first offence was trying to sneak into my room. Vlad may very well be a murderer, sadist, genocidal maniac, sociopath, and a general nuisance who has no common decency to not cause me heart attacks by not sneaking up on me, but apparently, he draws the line at that. And the second offence was that he managed to pour an ink pot on one of Vlad's favourite manuscripts. So, he got to hang around a couple of days at the end of a pole and we had to listen to Vlad's rants for a couple of months until one of his other followers managed to track down another copy. Mind you, we had almost gotten the thing copied, but he's pretty strict on trying to keep originals instead of copies in the library."

They all seem uneasy after Eszter is done with that small little tale. Dora hasn't truly seen the horrible side of library, not the same way Eszter has. Her stay was probably the calmest period Eszter ever saw there. More importantly, there were no other guests there during Dora's stay. That is almost unheard of.

Vlad must have really wanted to make sure Dora wouldn't get away.

They start telling her a story that begins with Bartholomew Rossi, Dora's grandfather, Helen's father, and Eszter's predecessor. Eszter listens attentively to how Paul and Helen got pulled into the mystery, how they travelled across Eastern Europe and Istanbul, how they eventually found the library in Bulgaria yet were just a little too late. Eszter listens to Turgut Bora's hesitant comments about the last remnants of the Ottoman empire and accepts the words for what they are. Eszter hears about Hugh James's Elsie, of Dora's Mr Johann Binnerts that got killed, of the hurried race to the Pyrenees that was supposed to end with Vlad's death. All this she listens to attentively and starts filling in all the pieces of the puzzle she was missing beforehand.

It all ends with Paul pulling an old book from the highest shelf and laying it down in front of her. Eszter opens it in the middle and looks at the dragon in surprise.

"It's different," she murmurs as she pulls her own book from her bag. All the others freeze as Eszter compares the two woodcuts next to each other and tries to trace a valley and its surrounding mountains on Paul's book. She gets an idea of what the Bulgarian library's resting place must have looked like before she turns her attention to her own copy.

"You have a book of your own?" Helen asks in a feint voice. Eszter hums as she studies her own drawing.

"Got given one just today," she murmurs as she thinks and then blinks. "It's the view from the garden."

"The garden?" Dora asks curiously. Eszter nods her head.

"You know, the little overgrown thing in the nook between the wings.  The tail and the body at least conform to that view. Don't ask what the head is supposed to be, I've never been to that side of the mountains."

Eszter lets them study the woodcut for a moment longer before she turns to the last page and the harsh lines drawn on it.

"What even is that?" Stephen Barley asks.

"Rovásírás," Helen and Eszter answer at the same time, though Helen is frowning. She probably can't read the writing, since her hand trails the letters from left to right instead of the right way around.

"He says I'm to return by next autumn, whatever that's supposed to mean."

Eszter stares at the words written in Vlad's hand and thinks. She's not entirely sure, but she thinks that the man will take her back to the library then. Of course, it may also mean that he will leave her to that life if she doesn't return willingly by that time. It might mean he kills her then; it might mean something completely different. All Eszter is certain of is that she will have one more summer as a human.

Eszter closes the final page and reopens the central pages with the dragon. It is a beautiful picture in its crudeness.

"I thought he didn't have any more of these books," Paul says with a shaken voice. "I thought he had printed the last ones in Bulgaria."

"Didn't Dora mention of the printing room?" Eszter questions confusedly and glances at Dora who looks completely lost. They stare at each other before Eszter remembers that Dora wasn't privy to all the secrets in the library. A small sigh leaves her lips as she sits down.

"The printing room?" Dora asks slowly. Eszter stares at air.

"You never got to see the other wing, did you?" Eszter murmurs. Dora shakes her head. She looks curious.

"I thought they just slept there," she says and then narrows her eyes. "Why do you know what there was?"

"They only started locking the gate again because you came along," Eszter tells. "Vlad kept the printing room locked and I wasn't stupid enough to go to their resting place, but I did sneak a few glances at the rooms every now and then. You know, just in case."

She was never brave enough to enter too deep, only the first few rooms. Eszter knows that the staircase at the end of the corridor would have led to their tomb, but she never went that far. Once she peeked down the staircase and wondered, but never did she even try.

Dora is looking at her thoughtfully as if she is rethinking all she knew about Eszter's time at the library before she arrived there. It's not that big of a deal to admit that she mostly got to do whatever she wanted if she put in a few hours of work each day, but she guesses they don't see it like that. They didn't know Vlad would allow her that kind of freedom, didn't know that she could stay awake during the days and sleep the nights if she wanted.

They also don't know how lonely that kind of rhythm got her. They don't know how she sometimes walked to the bend in the road and sat there for quite some time thinking about how easy it would be to slip away during the day, yet she always returned those times. Really, only the threats to her mother and to herself kept her there. If she had been turned back then, she wouldn't have thought twice about escaping her fate. It all changed because Dora managed to relight the long since extinguished longing in her.

There were the times they took her crutches and her leg brace away for the day, but once they saw the fight die in her, they slowly started to allow her more freedoms. She got used to the library, in the end, so used to it that knowing now her life in Amsterdam will end by the first day of autumn is a small relief.

Eszter doesn't say that thought aloud. She only studies her own dragon book and wonders if Vlad will sneak in her room during the deepest hours of the night before her time there is over.

* * *

At first Eszter struggles to get used to her new leg brace, but after a few weeks she can no longer imagine going back to earlier. To begin with, it supports the leg well enough that she can walk with just the help of a cane, which already feels like a small miracle after so many years, but it also doesn't dig into her skin the same way. It's stiffer, but much more comfortable.

Much less noticeable, as well. With a loose enough pair of trousers her leg is masked and Eszter is finally free of the stares she has gathered. She can't slip completely unnoticed because of the cane, but fewer people pay attention to that than to the crutches and the lumpy brace.

Being able to walk again is such an odd thing that sometimes Eszter sits in her room with a stupid smile on her face as she stares at her new brace. One of those times the window happens to be open to help with the heat stuck inside the house. Sun has been baking its sides and it's getting warm enough that keeping a window open round the clock is a necessity.

It's that time she happens to glance up and see Vlad sitting on the other end of the bed like he has been there always. Eszter is surprised for a moment and then eases up a little. Night-time has once again sneaked up on her. Gone are the days when she was constantly aware of the sun's movements in the sky, gone are the nights when she could glance at the sky to know how far away the dawn was. It's much harder to tell those things in the city. The sky there is never as clear as it was in the mountains.

"I've heard news that you can walk now," Vlad notes lightly as if they were talking about the weather even though he knows exactly how much Eszter has struggled with it throughout the years. Eszter can't help but smile a little.

"I got fitted with a new brace," she answers. "It fits me so much better than the old one. I can't walk without a cane yet, but it might be possible by autumn."

Eszter glances at Vlad and tries to read his reaction to her words. She wonders if he will allow her to keep the brace back at the library, wonders if she'll be able to walk again one day.

"Seems like the bite has helped a little with your leg, then," he says. "I did wonder."

Eszter stretches her back lazily. She is getting stronger and healthier, partially probably because of all the activity and partially because of Vlad's bites slowly changing her.

Eszter only notices Vlad's appreciative glance when her back cracks a little. She blushes as he chuckles and then relaxes as much as he ever does. It's odd seeing him out of his usual regalia and instead in a much more modern outfit. It's still not outright contemporary, but no one would raise any eyebrows if he passed them in the street.

"Have you acquired anything interesting lately?" Eszter asks curiously and lets herself relax against the headboard. Speaking with Vlad still feels natural as they talk about the library. Eszter thinks of all the books she's missed already and feels a small ache inside her ribcage at the thought. Vlad seems to understand, since he nods his head in as much sympathy as her ever gives anyone.

"A few things. Florence asks after you quite often," he notes. Eszter nods her head and then stops. Vlad notices her hesitation but doesn't hurry her answer. There have been many times throughout the years Eszter has stopped to think for a moment before saying something, and he knows there is no point in forcing her to speak before she's ready.

"Will you break my legs now?" Eszter asks quietly. Vlad studies her face for an exceptionally long moment. She has thought about the punishment she will face for her escape. Vlad is not a man to let anything slip by unpunished, but Eszter also knows that the man doesn't act like this normally. Usually he punishes her himself. Already letting Matteo do the dirty work for him was a hint that something had changed.

Eszter isn't sure what is all means, and sometimes she is much too frightened to think about it for a long time.

"You may keep them for now," Vlad says eventually. Eszter covers her face for a moment as she breathes a little easier and feels relief stinging in her eyes. It takes all she can to blink back her tears and to collect herself again, to show Vlad that she will accept whatever he decides a just punishment should be.

He is quiet for a long time as he looks around the room. Eszter doesn't know if the man gave any thought to their surroundings the last time, but now at least he seems to take note of them.

"You would have never left on your own," he says after a long while. Eszter lowers her eyes. Worry is gnawing at her stomach. Does that mean Vlad is thinking about hurting Dora? Does that mean he will do something to the only family Eszter can still call her own when he takes her back to the library, back where she belongs?

The thought is surprisingly hard to swallow.

"You don't need to hurt them," Eszter says and bites her lip.

"No, I don't," he replies, though that isn't much better than no answer at all. He might just agree that he could hurt her in other ways and has chosen that. All the same, he might say that he will not do that. Eszter doesn't know what he thinks. She can only try and guess.

They sit like that for a long moment. The house is quiet. The others are out watching a movie and enjoying their time as a family. They don't know any better to know that she is usually the one who stays up all night. They don't know any better to see all those times Eszter sits by the window and looks at the city but still imagines the mountains, a different kind of breeze without any salt in it.

"Would you have returned on your own?" Vlad asks her. Eszter sighs and looks at the too familiar front of the opposite building. She's sat by the window enough to notice any changes with just a quick glance.

"Maybe not for a year or two, but eventually," she says. "Had there been no one in Amsterdam I probably could have pretended to be better with this life for a longer time, but alas. I don't really fit here. Their libraries are fine enough, but not nowhere near enough yours."

All those books, all that knowledge. She didn't even realise earlier how much she would lose just by leaving. Vlad nods his head in understanding.

Eszter is quiet for a moment longer.

"I think I already died back in Debrecen, in a way," she says. Vlad studies her.

"I honestly did not think you'd ever last in the library," he tells her bluntly. "You were too fragile outwardly. I thought you'd maybe last a year or two, long enough to train your mother. Instead you were the one to adapt and she was the one to crumble."

Eszter nods her head. She has suspected as much during the years. She's always known why she was taken there in the first place.

"I _had_ gotten out of the hospital just six days before," she tells him. He looks a bit surprised at the information. Eszter has never willingly talked about that time.

"That would explain the unfamiliarity with the crutches and braces," he murmurs. Eszter frowns and he gives her an unimpressed look. "It took maybe a week for Florence to realise how you didn't actually know how to lace your brace properly. Why else do you think she would have just announced that your poor heart needed help with it?"

Eszter shrugs.

"You can never really tell with Florence," she defends herself. Vlad's lips twist in amusement. Eszter's not too certain about any specifics, but Florence's accent is from the American South. If all the novels Eszter has read throughout the years are of any help, Florence's comment could have been understood to mean that her way of dressing was inadequate in other ways as well, so she had to keep an eye on it.

Eszter is certain Florence was the reason her wardrobe got filled with high-necked blouses and sensible skirts instead of the clothes she was used to wearing in her life before.

They are quiet for a moment as Eszter thinks back on those last days in Debrecen. She wasn't still used to her leg, still thought she would walk normally again one day, but she was too quiet and too messed up after all those months. She really doesn't believe she would have lived even this long had she been forced to live the life her mother tried to get her interested back in.

She got to heal in peace at the library, found herself again, started to really live again. Without the library, she would have probably hung herself after realising she wouldn't get her leg back.

"I don't fit here," she tells Vlad quietly. "Even if I could walk like them, I don't get all their jokes or feel like I can be myself around them. I keep staying up too late and missing half the time everyone else is awake. I miss the library. I miss… home."

Vlad studies her.

"If you want, I can take you there this night," he tells her. Eszter bites her lip and thinks, thinks about the summer she could have had, all the things Dora has planned, the trips to other towns Helen and Paul have planned.

She thinks about them coming back to an empty home. She thinks about how confused and frightened they'll be, thinks about all the worried glances she has seen Paul and Helen sharing when they have thought she hasn't been looking. They have been planning for helping her last longer than the autumn. They have been planning for some mad dash of a foolish errand, and Eszter is so tired. She just wants to go back home, return to her library and the world where she grew up, where she learned how to be herself again.

"Can I leave them a message?" she asks as she still ponders her decision. Vlad nods his head just an inch. Eszter takes a notebook from the nightstand and thinks for a long moment. Slowly, she writes the first and only message she will leave the family who took her in, who let her live with them for a moment, who she thinks as her own family now.

Eszter rests the pen between the pages and lays the notebook gently on the bed. She accepts Vlad's hand easily, takes in a deep breath and then follows him through the house onto the darkened street. They stand there for a moment as he gives her a chance to go back. Eszter glances at the familiar house and then she turns back towards Vlad and lets him lead her into the darkness.

 


	9. Chapter 9

It takes a couple of days for the weirdness of being back at the library to pass. Eszter keeps waiting for a punishment, but instead Vlad allows her to settle back into the old rhythm as if she had never been gone. It's unnerving to be forced to wait, but after two weeks pass, Eszter has to admit that the man doesn't seem like he would punish her.

It confuses her more than she can even admit to herself.

Matteo is gone, apparently on a trip to acquire some rare books, but Florence seems delighted that Eszter is back. The woman gives her a fond smile the first night she sees Eszter but doesn't comment on anything else. Eszter feels odd to be able to walk between the shelves instead of dragging herself around on crutches. It's easier to work now, certainly. Eszter guesses that is the reason Vlad hasn't decided to break her legs as he promised. After all, he wanted his librarian back, and if Eszter was stuck in bed for weeks or months, the work would grind to another halt.

Not much has changed. The biggest difference between her two times at the library would be that Vlad has locked the human wing completely and Eszter now resides in the forbidden wing. The room there is comfortable enough, she supposes, though the view is towards her small garden instead of the mountains. In a manner Eszter likes that room more than her previous one, she muses as she sits on the window bench and brushes through her hair. The night is falling and soon Vlad and Florence will rise, but for now, she still has a moment completely to herself.

It's not lonely in the library as Eszter had feared. In a way, she can be more like herself there than she ever felt like in Amsterdam. Sure, she will miss Paul and Helen and their daughter, but they will eventually understand that it is better for them to remain as a small family without her. Dora will learn to live as her own person, and Eszter would have never fit into their lifestyle.

Eszter starts plaiting her hair and glances at the sunset. Her circadian rhythm is still all over the place, but it's getting easier to stay awake during the nights and sleep during the days again. Sometimes she forgets it as she wakes up groggy with the sun tickling her face and forces herself properly awake before remembering, but those times come rarer and rarer. After all, she has been more used to nights than days for the past ten years.

The brace is still odd to put on herself and Eszter guesses that will never change, but at least her leg has stopped hurting as much. She still has her medication, that hasn't changed, but now she can stand for longer periods without feeling like her muscles are immediately cramping.

The lightweight dress is one of Florence's. It's a bit big on her, but much more comfortable than one of her own. They're too thick for the heat of the summer. The house remains cool thanks to the thick walls, but the heat still seeps in enough that Eszter is thankful for having Florence's permission to borrow anything from her closet she likes.

The sock goes on to the leg, and the leg brace is the last thing she puts on. She looks a bit odd with just one sock on, but it's a compromise she'll gladly make. Being able to walk again is worth much more than how uncomfortably hot her leg can get inside the thick leather casing.

The sun has just set when Eszter gets up and starts walking towards the library. There's no movement out in the hallway yet, but she can hear the clunk of a door hitting its frame coming from the staircase at the end of the hallway. Eszter pays it no mind as she heads to the library and manoeuvres the heavy door open with her hip.

"You're up rather late," Florence notes as she takes hold of the door and lets Eszter in before her. Eszter shrugs.

"At least I'm starting to get used to this rhythm again," Eszter notes calmly. Florence's lips twitch a little.

Eszter sews a few new bindings to books that have been in a desperate need of it during the first few hours before she takes a small break and heads to catch something to eat in the kitchen. At first, she had expected that they would try to control her as much as they could, but instead, it's almost like the whole episode with Dora had never happened. Florence and Vlad certainly never refer to it. Eszter has the freedom to be awake and go to sleep when she feels like it, and they pay no mind to her prowling around the house. Sure, her old rooms are locked up and there is no way Eszter would want to try the limits of their patience, but still... She would have thought they'd be much more guarded.

Perhaps they know now she won't run again. After all, Vlad gave her a choice that night and she came willingly. Eszter muses on that as she cleans the dishes and heads back into the library.

Speaking of the devil, the man is studying her working station as she returns. Eszter lays down her cane and sits down in her usual chair and then glances at Vlad uneasily. She isn't certain of what their relationship is anymore. The man hasn't kissed her once they returned to the library, but his hand has lingered on her skin and he keeps studying her in a different manner than before. Eszter waits for a moment, but as Vlad seems content with studying what she has been working on, she eventually picks up the needle again and threads it and then stars resewing the bindings.

He stands nearby, so Eszter doesn't notice at first as he slips closer. At some point she straightens her back and feels him straight behind her back. Eszter blinks and almost drops the stack of pages in her hands but manages to avoid ruining her work. He lowers his hands on her shoulders as she ties another know with shakier hands than before.

His right hand travels down her arm, while the left rises to her neck. He can certainly feel her uneven breaths and a pulse that is racing, but Eszter forces herself to focus on the book in her hands. Florence is somewhere in the library, and Eszter does not want to tip her off to what is going on. To begin with, she would never live through it, and second, she does not want to hear what Florence would say.

Somehow Eszter manages to finish the last few knots before Vlad manages to completely distract her. He certainly is doing a decent job of it: his thumb travels over her bare skin in small circles and makes a small shiver run down her spine. He can feel every slightest movement, notices every tiniest reaction, so he knows exactly just how big an impact he has on her.

Eszter wonders what he is going to do when she hears Florence's steps coming closer.

"Don't mind me," Florence murmurs sarcastically as she coops up the few finished books Eszter has been working on. The young woman can feel her face burning up as Florence gives the two of them a knowing look. Vlad has the audacity to chuckle. "Eszter, I expected much better of you. And Vlad, you should even have the decency to not force me to be in the same room," Florence continues while shaking her head in disapproval.

"That can be arranged," Vlad notes calmly and then offers Eszter a hand. The young woman refuses taking it and rises on her own. Vlad raises an eyebrow at her but doesn't say anything as Eszter quickly makes her way out of the library with her face rivalling her hair in redness.

Vlad closes the door to her room behind him and closes the lock. Eszter doesn't look in his direction as she tries to collect herself. The man comes closer with swooping steps. There is nothing uncertain in his facade. Eszter feels like a mess compared to the calmness and confidence he exhibits. She squeezes her cane with all her strength and takes in a slow breath as Vlad stops in front of her and lays a lingering touch on her cheek.

"Look at me."

Eszter avoids it for a moment, but then he slowly raises her chin with his fingers and she eventually obeys. Their eyes meet.

"Do you truly think Florence was unaware of what I have been planning to do with you?" he asks her. Eszter swallows.

"I just don't want her disapproval," she murmurs and avoids his eyes. Vlad's fingernails dig just a little into her flesh in reminder and Eszter forces herself to look at the man again.

"Florence will think no less of you," Vlad tells her calmly and then lowers his hand.

Eszter takes in a shaky breath. It's tough to realise that Florence and Matteo may have been aware of Vlad's plans longer than her. How long has he even thought about having her like this, taking her as something else than another vassal? Eszter can only guess. Even now she can't be sure if this is just another ploy and he's planning on something else.

The man is confusing, but perhaps not knowing all to come is a little easier than being faced with all his thoughts and plans.

He steps away and lets her think for a moment. Eszter isn't that sure if he's expecting her to do something, but as she stands there, under his careful consideration, she feels oddly vulnerable. The pieces of her life don't fit into the narrative she expected them to fit into. Perhaps they never were meant for a story like that.

Perhaps the future she imagined must be forgotten.

"Vlad?" she asks quietly. He bends his neck a little. "What will it be like?"

"After you die?" he asks bluntly. Eszter nods her head. He studies her face for a moment before taking her hand and leading her to sit down on the bed.

He doesn't lie to her, of course he doesn't. Eszter listens to his calm words, the smooth stream of his eloquent speech, and wonders if she'll see it like he does. He paints a harsh but oddly charming image. There is something uncanny in the metaphors he uses, something eerily familiar but different enough to be a little uneasy.

He tells her of nights that are far more vibrant than human eyes could ever truly see, of the senses that sharpen until everything feels so clear that everything beforehand feels like an imitation. He tells her of an insatiable hunger than burns like a flame yet that can be forgotten if one is stubborn enough. He tells of her the pleasure of feeling someone's pulse against one's lips, the anticipation before a sharp pain and an involuntary gasp. He tells her of the drowsiness the impending day brings out, and the urge to lay down. He tells her of never dreaming again, and Eszter can only sit in silence for a long moment after he stops.

"No dreams at all?" is her eventual question. He nods his head as calm as can be and lets her think for a few more moments.

The thought of closing eyes and just opening them without anything in between feels perhaps like the biggest change in everything. Only that little titbit makes it feel like it's really going to happen to her. She doesn't know if she'll feel the same way about anything, if she'll still miss her garden and sunlight on her skin and the gentle breeze of a late afternoon wind. All that may seem unimportant afterwards, but for now Eszter has a tough time imagining life without those small pleasures and details.

"Very few of us ever have dreams," he tells her. "I certainly never fade that deeply. It's unlikely you would."

"But some dream even afterwards," Eszter murmurs. She wonders quietly to herself if there is some reason or rhyme for that. Perhaps it's just something that happens. Perhaps there is no real reason to it.

Eszter hopes she could dream. The thought of lying for hours just like a corpse and not even having anything to prove that she wasn't completely gone during that time is unnerving.

"Is that truly the one thing you will have an issue with?" Vlad asks with mirth in his voice. "The blood and the hunger seem to not even face you, but not dreaming?"

"It's just very hard to imagine lying unconscious for hours without even one dream anywhere," she mutters. Vlad huffs.

"You do have very vivid dreams, and very often as well," he notes. Eszter glances at the man and can feel heat creeping up her cheeks. He chuckles and relaxes the tiniest amount. There is still the same rigidity of a man from centuries ago, a man raised to be noble and to rule, but the change is enough for Eszter to catch.  Some probably wouldn't, but they wouldn't know what to even look for.

"Do you often creep in them?" Eszter asks and wonders what he might have seen inside her head. His smile takes a less mocking and more kind quality.

"It's hard not to be drawn into them sometimes," he tells her. "Even Matteo and Florence can feel them sometimes when they are vivid enough. It's not usually much more than a few images and a ghost of an emotion, but even they feel oddly powerful. You project your thoughts quite strongly."

Eszter frowns as he wonders about that. Vlad sees the question on her face even before she has any idea of how to formulate it.

"It does make you easier to follow and to like," he notes. "You're quite the lighthouse among humans if one only knows what to look for."

"You were at the truck stop," Eszter says. Vlad nods his head.

How long were they followed for? How couldn't she have felt something earlier than that? Was it his decision to see what they would end up doing, or was he simply curious of how far they could get?

He may have noticed them leaving as soon as he realised she never fell asleep, Eszter realises. He allowed them to leave, but why? After all the threats he made throughout the years, after all the times he reminded her of the price of trying to escape, why would he just change his mind like that?

Eszter realises the answer soon enough. She looks at Vlad again, now with wondering eyes.

"You wanted to see if I would come back on my own," she says. Vlad's lip curls a little.

His kiss is surprisingly soft.

"Clever girl," he murmurs as he leaves her alone in her bedroom filled with thoughts and sudden uncertainty.

* * *

The last summer of Eszter's life goes by so fast yet each day lingers just out of reach. The courtyard garden is more beautiful than ever before, blooming and full of life. Eszter spends many mornings and afternoons there, sits by the bench and the sharp line between beauty and a deadly drop. The sweet smell of flowers lingers on her skin just as the sunshine does. Her freckles come out with the many hours she spends there. Vlad seems more amused than annoyed that she has decided to spend her final months like that, but he doesn't comment anything. Florence only shakes her head occasionally. Matteo keeps his distance.

Eszter closes her eyes for a moment and breathes in slowly. The summer is almost gone, only a few days remain at most, and she knows that soon she will become one of those who cannot face the day. She will miss the sunshine just as she will miss her garden. Oh, how different it is during the nights! The flowers are just as vivid and just as alive, but they are restrained by the darkness or the candles that give an unnatural glow to them. Eszter knows these are her final days to remember the garden. It will take most likely decades, even centuries to be able to walk in light again.

She has sketchbooks full of vivid colour. Never has she been one for drawing like she has now been. Those sketches will help keep her memories alive once her time is gone. Those drawings will remind her of these days so beautiful, of these lone yet not lonely moments on top of the mountain.

The sun slips under the horizon. The sky is still bright, but night comes quickly here. Eszter sits in silence and studies the colour of the sky, lets her memories be painted by it.

She has stared at so many sunrises and sunsets like that. She's not afraid of the change, not afraid of her life ending, but there is a longing that cannot be fulfilled by just a memory or an imagined picture.

Vlad sits down next to her easily enough and studies the sky just as she does. Eszter misses the feel of his skin, the way his kisses stole her breath, but she hasn't been ready for all the things kissing him again would mean.

The sky is dark now and the stars are coming out. Eszter lowers her eyes at Vlad. There will be time to study the stars later.

"Come," he tells her. His hand is as steady as ever. Eszter follows him to the no-longer forbidden wing and towards the staircase she has stolen glances of. She hesitates just a little, but he takes his place in front of her and allows her to walk the stairs as slow as she needs to.

There are a few candles downstairs, just enough that she can see ahead of her. Her cane clicks on the stone floor. Vlad opens the heavy wooden door and lets her step into the cold room in front of him, then pulls it closed again. The corridor leads deep. Eszter wonders if she'll walk it back with her heart still beating.

She is stronger now, healthier than in years, more alike a human than ever since she left the hospital. There is a certain irony in the thought that now that she has learned how to be a human again, she will have to learn something completely different.

He opens another heavy wooden door. The room that is revealed has four open sarcophagi. One of them has her full name carved into its side. Eszter steps hesitantly closer and touches it, just to be sure that this is real. The stone is cold and unyielding underneath her hand.

It's an odd thing to know that this will be her tomb. It looks so big even though Eszter knows it won't be that big when she's lying there. It certainly is tall enough that she knows she'll have trouble getting in and out of her own sarcophagus. The thought brings a small, amused smile on her lips.

"I did not think seeing it would make you smile," Vlad tells her. She has surprised him again.

"I'm just imagining how scandalised Florence is going to look once she realises how undignified I am going to be getting in and out," she says the thought aloud. His face changes just the tiniest bit. Eszter can help but burst into laughter as he realises how true her words ring. She has to lean heavily on her own sarcophagus to not fall over.

It's a long while until she manages to compose herself. There is a small tension at the corner of his mouth. Eszter leans over and kisses him softly.

"Is it tonight?" she whispers. He stands, unmoving, still composing himself.

"If... you feel you are ready for it," he says, slowly. He hasn't been expecting her to take it that easily. Eszter thinks for a moment and then takes his hand.

"I think there is still something I would like to experience as a human," she tells him quietly. Vlad studies her face and then nods his head. She doesn't have to say anything else to make him understand exactly what she is talking about.

He leads her back upstairs, holding her hand steadily. She is nervous, of course she is, but she is also filled with eagerness. His hand is strong, but if Eszter wanted to, she could easily stop it all. Vlad is like that, full of contradictions. He can easily hurt someone in the cruellest manner possible, yet he has never glanced at her body in a manner that has made her scared of his intentions. There is much to be said about the man, but Eszter knows he will not hurt her like that.

As Vlad closes the door behind them, Eszter takes in a breath and shakes her shoulders loose. He studies her as she limps to sit on the window bench and starts unlacing first her boots, then the actual brace itself. Vlad sits down behind her back and takes over the work with surprisingly nimble hands.

There's something very intimate in the way his hands have wrapped around her, in the way they remove the string and how they free her leg from the brace. Eszter leans a bit closer to him and can feel his lips press against the sharp bones of her spine. A small shiver travels down her back as his hands touch the upper edge of her sock and roll it down slowly, teasingly slowly.

He has seen her in fewer clothes before, but somehow this feels much more intimate, letting him undress her. Eszter glances unsurely at his hands and pulls her leg towards her body so that he can take the thick sock off.

"You're tense," he murmurs against her skin. Eszter shivers a little. She won't deny that she is nervous. He can feel it as clear as day. Instead Eszter takes his hands and moves them to her other thigh and let them peel off the other cotton sock.

She's not afraid, not anymore. She knows he has seen her body before, has appreciated it through thin fabric that clings on skin. It's a different thing to remove everything, though. This means more than just letting him have her body the same way he has had her blood. This means the closing moments of her life, the final goodbye to what she used to know.

In a way, this is another end and yet a beginning, a cliffside with a fall so deep she doesn't see the end. She has no idea how this all will end.

Eszter melts against his body and they sit like that for a moment, just his hands wrapped around her body and her closing her eyes, calming her nerves, getting used to feeling his lips again against her neck.

There is much to explore, but the night is long, so very, very long.

* * *

 

Eszter is alone when she wakes up. She blinks blearily and then stretches slowly. Sunlight paints her skin into a more human colour than the misty greys of the hours between dusk and dawn during the summers or the ink black night of winters. Eszter glances at her own body, a body that feels a little different, and can't help but smile just a little.

There is something to be said about intimacy. Eszter wonders what it would feel like to wake up next to Vlad, but she guesses that might never happen. Last night was what it was. There is no certainty as to whether it will happen again or not, but Eszter hopes it does. Vlad felt oddly kind during those moments. He knew how nervous she was, knew that she only had an idea created of what she has read, and he was far more patient than Eszter would have even guessed. Perhaps the man with all the time in the world doesn't need to hurry something like that, after all.

Eszter slowly gets up and puts on a light dress. Her clothes from the night before are lying abandoned and she collects them with a small smile. She doesn't feel that different, yet somehow, she all the same does. It really doesn't make any sense. Perhaps she just is more aware of herself, now that someone else has taught her what her small body can feel like.

Eszter glances at the sky and calculates the time. There are some hours until sundown, yet she doesn't want to get up. Instead of doing anything productive, she returns to her bed after cleaning up the room and opening the window, and lets her mind wander in the thoughts and memories of the night before.

Her daydreaming is interrupted by a chill travelling down her spine. Eszter frowns and then glances at the window and stops. The last remnants of summer are gone. The wind is full of autumn. When she gets up and sits by the window for a moment, she realises just how yellow the few patches of grass are and how withered the flowers have become.

Autumn is here. Eszter knows her life will end in just a few hours, and suddenly her body feels heavy as lead. She barely manages to keep herself sitting.

How can it feel so sudden when she's known about it for months? How can it feel like she is no longer certain about herself or whether she should try and do something to hold onto life just a little longer? No, she shakes her head, she mustn't do something like that. It's better to face death like the old friend it is, better to accept it.

Fear still lingers, even after she decides she will not fight. She sits by the window and looks at the nature that has suddenly forgotten just how a few days ago it was all full of light, full of life. She looks at the mountainsides and the flowers and listens to the howling wind that travels from faraway lands that she's never been to but has read all about, and she waits in silence until there are just a few moments left. At that point she gets up and walks into the library and looks at all the books. She gently touches the backs of a few of them and lets her eyes roam among all the shelves and the hidden secrets.

This is her library now, her home. Eszter wonders if it will look the same with all new eyes.

She can feel the moment the doors to the library are opened, can feel each of Vlad's steps as he travels closer to her, and she stands there with a straight back and fear in her soul and more bravery than she ever thought she could muster.

Vlad stops behind her. Eszter closes her eyes and lets herself remain calm as he takes her into his arms. His lips travel down from her ear to her neck. The touch lingers as his fingers squeeze her harder against him and she breathes slowly as the kiss turns painful.

Her head feels dizzy, and the only reason she doesn't fall is because he holds her up. Vlad takes hold of her and lowers something to her mouth. A few drops of blood travel down her aching throat. The world feels fuzzy and Eszter falls limp against him.

Her heart beats so fast it's almost painful. Eszter's eyes barely catch any images as he carries her somewhere. There is no hesitation in his form.

He is gentle as he lays her down onto cold stone. Eszter's eyes flutter and she looks at him, looks at his bright green eyes, stares into them and feels her heart slowing down.

He keeps looking at her when her life finally ends.

* * *

 

Eszter only knows her eyes are open because she felt the movement. There is only darkness, unforgiving darkness that nothing has pierced. Eszter lies there quietly and listens to an odd sound ringing in her ears, or more aptly, a loss of something

She can feel her lungs expanding with air that is dull to the senses, but breathing doesn't feel like anything. Air is just flowing, not changing anything. Air is just being pushed into lungs that expand with it but that take nothing from it and give nothing to it. Eszter blinks, she can feel herself blinking, yet nothing changes.

There is just darkness.

She nearly screams as she feels someone touching her.

"You're awake already," someone says. It takes a while to recognise the voice. Eszter has never heard such rasp in anyone else's voice. His voice sounds different than before, though. Everything sounds different.

"I can't see," Eszter mumbles and tries to move. She bumps her head against something, not hard enough to hurt but hard enough to make her stop. She spreads her arms out and feels the cool stone against the tips of her fingers. Vlad's hand still rests on one of her arms.

There is a click then an almost blinding light. Eszter blinks against the sudden invasion and is then transfixed by the flame of the cigarette lighter. Vlad's face looks strange in the light and it takes a moment for Eszter to realise just where exactly she is lying. He is standing above her, holding the light for her, holding her arm in a way that is oddly calming and distracting all the same.

Eszter feels dizzy as she slowly pulls herself into a sitting position and tries to collect her memories. Bits and pieces come back one at a time, then suddenly all at once. Eszter shivers even though she isn't cold, and Vlad offers his hand for her.

It's just as awkward getting out of the sarcophagus as Eszter had imagined it would be. Her leg is stiff with the brace, but there is no longer any pain. It throws her off for a few moments as she stands there, so close to his body that she can feel his chest rising with his breaths. Eszter knows heat should rush to her cheeks because of that, yet nothing like that happens. Instead she stands there with her fingers wrapped around his shirt and studying the feeling of the material.

He doesn't say anything, just gives her time to understand it all. Eszter feels weak, her mouth feels odd, and there is that odd quality in all the things she hears, yet Vlad stays still and allows her to get used to it.

"Come," he says eventually when Eszter has gathered enough nerves to study his face with brand new eyes. Eszter looks around for her cane, but Vlad takes her hand in an iron grip. He pulls her for the first few steps before she realises that her leg won't give out under her.

The dullness of the air changes as the first door opens, and soon enough they are standing at the bottom of the spiral staircase. The first step is clumsy, Eszter unused to walking without a cane or crutches, but eventually she catches up. Vlad seems a little pleased with how quickly she seems to adapt to being so different.

The light upstairs is a dull grey. Eszter realises the sun has barely gone down, and she stops on her tracks. Vlad looks at her for a moment with harshness, but then he sees the slight fear in her eyes and how tight her body has wound.

"The sun cannot hurt you now," he tells her. "The light is much too weak right now, but had you gotten up the moment you woke, it may have stung quite a bit."

Eszter doesn't really understand why she has woken up so early, but since Vlad doesn't seem to pay it any mind, she soon decides that perhaps that's not the most important thing right now.

Vlad leads her to the library. Even through the door Eszter can hear something on the other side, and she frowns as the man pulls the doors open. He allows her hesitant and uneven steps, he allows her a few seconds of intent listening.

"Master," one of Vlad's human followers comes rushing closer the moment they step through the door. Eszter steps hesitantly back, but instead Vlad holds up his hand and stops her with a gesture. The human follower turns to Eszter and, to her surprise, bows down the her after bowing down to Vlad.

"Miss Eszter," come the respectful words. Eszter's eyes dart between the human follower and Vlad. She no longer has any idea of what is going on.

How long did she lie in the sarcophagus, dead to the world? She shivers a little as that thought crosses her mind. Is she even alive right now? She certainly can't feel a pulse. Instead she senses something warm, something delicious right next to her. It takes a while for her to realise that the human is the source of smell, and an even longer moment to realise that Vlad is looking at her expectantly.

"What are you waiting for?" he asks her with raised eyebrows. Eszter looks at the human.

"I have no idea what I'm supposed to do," she mutters slowly as she studies the human. He smells good and Eszter knows she is hungry, but there is no instinct that tells her what she should be doing. Vlad sighs.

"You are the worst vampire to ever have existed," Vlad mutters so quietly it's almost as if he's speaking to himself. Eszter knows that before she wouldn't have been able to hear the words, but now it's not even a strain.

"You're the one who made me, so you have only yourself to blame."

That gets a surprised chuckle out of Vlad. He challenges her with a raised eyebrow, and Eszter takes a hesitant step closer to the human man. He opens the uppermost button of his shirt and bends his knees a little so that Eszter doesn't have to strain upwards. She still feels uneven as she studies the two bite marks on his neck and then tries to aim her mouth as best as she can.

Her corner teeth pierce his skin easier than she could have even expected, and she lets out a small surprised sound before the taste of blood floods her mouth. For a moment there is nothing but the taste, nothing but the pulse Eszter can feel flowing under the skin, and then she feels strong arms wrapping around her shoulders.

"That is enough, Eszter," Vlad tells her and pulls her off the man. Eszter feels like she's in a daze. The man swallows a few times and it seems to be a bit painful, but he seems unbothered otherwise. Vlad's hands are still tight on her shoulders, but the longer she stands still, the more freedom he allows her. Eventually his hands only rest on her shoulders, no longer squeezing them.

"Thank you," she tells the man quietly. He nods his head, seems a little surprised, and closes the button of his shirt. There is a small stain on his shirt where Eszter bit him, but it doesn't seem to be spreading. Perhaps she drank too much, and now the man feels dizzy with blood loss. Perhaps someone bit him in a way that Eszter drinking from him would not make him bleed for too long.

The library feels different. Eszter takes in the view for a few moments before her eyes get used to seeing so much all at once. Vlad gives her the time she needs, and then he leads her to her old working station. Her cane is laid carefully against a shelf as if she had just stepped away for a moment. The scent of books feels stronger now. The windows are darkened with dusk and the faint rain droplets that have managed to reach the glass.

Her eyes see so much. Eszter sneaks a glance at Vlad and studies the man for a moment. Her eyes roam his face, then follow the brown curls down his arms until they settle on the scarred hands. She's struck with how many there really are, struck with the reminder of all the violence the man has faced.

"Eszter," she hears him call her after a moment. Eszter looks at his face. There is a question in his eyes and raised eyebrow. Eszter knows she would have blushed before, but now her face remains just as cool as it was a moment ago.

His fingers are missing a ring. Eszter frowns as she studies them again, but she is certain that there used to be one more.

His hands take hers and Eszter finds the one, missing ring in one of her own fingers. She stands completely still and tries to understand.

"You could have just asked," she eventually tells him.

"I wanted them to see that you are mine and mine only," he tells her. Eszter stares at the heavy, golden band and the gem. It's surprisingly light since she didn't notice it for such a long time, but now that she has, the weight seems heavy enough that she should have immediately noticed it. Did he slip it on her finger while she was lying dead in her sarcophagus? When did he decide she should carry his ring in her finger?

Eszter doesn't know if he would answer her even if she asked, so she simply lets him hold her hands and tries to keep her thoughts in an understandable form.

He wants her to be his. It's not an odd wish for someone like him, a man that guards all his possessions with a passion that is lethal. Is she just one of them, like another book in his library? He seems to sense the thought, since he brushes a strand of her hair behind her ear.

His kiss is cool on her lips. Eszter answers it softly, still full of anxiety and worry. Vlad studies her face for a moment longer and then looks at her desk.

"In a few months I will take you to see all the wonders of the world," he tells her. His hand takes her smaller one and squeezes it lightly.

Eszter imagines all the cities of Europe she has read about, all the places she has wondered about. She thinks about being able to walk again, thinks about the possibility of returning to Hungary, and she squeezes his hand tightly.

The night is long. She has all the time in the world.


	10. Epilogue

The university library is filled with students. It seems like escaping the freezing temperatures has been a common idea, Dora – or Dorothy, as she's now called more often than not – notes to herself. She brushes a bit of snow off and then heads upstairs to the quieter study nooks with unhurried steps. Her usual table is probably free of others. She's certainly laid her claim on it so often that nowadays she only needs to step into the study hall and whoever has taken the place will hastily leave it if they've even dared to settle in.

Dorothy has just had an interesting meeting with her thesis advisor and she is still filled with all those little comments and ideas she got from that meeting. Her fingers are itching to write a few hurried words in her notebook, add a few comments to the margins of the current text. She turns around a corner and notes that her table is empty, and so are all the other tables in the room as well. Dora pays it no mind as she settles in and excitedly pulls out all her notes and the few books she carried with her to the meeting. A bunch of her research is back at her small apartment, and the rest of the material is in the university locker not far from her table. Dora scribbles a few notes in her notebook hurriedly before heading to the lockers, brimming with thoughts.

She stops still as she notes a figure standing between the shelves. Something in it is familiar, yet there is something very odd in it. Dora stares at the figure before she recognises the copper-red hair.

"Eszter?" she asks slowly, and the figure turns around, certainly with more grace than Dora has seen her move ever before. Eszter looks surprised, and then recognition flashes on her face. A bright smile spreads on her lips.

"Dora," she sounds delighted. Her smile is bright, but she stands far away, doesn't move from between the shelves. There is a certain wariness in Eszter's form. Dora realises after a moment that Eszter must be afraid of her, or perhaps she doesn't want to fight.

"We didn't know if..."

Dora's words fade away. She carefully studies Eszter for the first time in years. The odd woman who saved her stands still under the eyes, looking as young as she was when she disappeared. Her face is a bit paler, but not by much. There is a slight blush to the cheeks. Dora realises Eszter must have used makeup to make herself look a bit more normal, because she doesn't look much like any other vampires Dora has seen but she is undoubtedly one.

"He came that night," Eszter says quietly. "I thought it would be best for all if I left then."

There is a bit of hesitation in Eszter's voice. She still isn't sure how Dora will react once the shock passes, but Dora forces herself to take in a deep breath and to think about it all analytically.

Eszter doesn't look that different, all considered. She still has a cane, but Dora notices that Eszter doesn't need it nearly as much as she did before. Her face still has a softness and kindness to it. It's hard to imagine how Eszter has managed to hold on to those qualities with the company she's kept, but somehow, she's managed just that. She hesitantly steps closer after a moment of intense internal debating, then once more. Dora smiles slowly but nervously.

"I thought I'd never see you again," Dora says. She knows Eszter can sense the unspoken question. Eszter nods her head slowly.

"I certainly didn't plan to meet you here," Eszter murmurs. "They did say you studied here, but... Well, it doesn't matter now."

Dora worries for a moment, but since Eszter doesn't seem to be planning on anything, they are at a standstill. Neither knows what the other is thinking. Neither knows if they can trust the other's word. After all, they are supposed to be on opposite sides. After all, Dora has not once returned to the mystery her parents left her, not once Eszter disappeared.

Her parents must have stopped looking eventually. They at least only mention Eszter rarely anymore. She's more of a passing chapter in all of their lives rather than the sister Dora feels like she never had. Eszter saved her life, helped her return to Amsterdam even with her own life on the line. Dora's parents may not think about the woman much anymore, but their daughter never stopped wondering whether Eszter left willingly or not.

They stand there for a moment longer.

"I should go," Eszter says hesitantly. "He's waiting for me, and I don't think you want him to come here."

A cold shiver runs down Dora's spine.

"No, I really don't," Dora answers. They stare at each other for a moment longer and then avert their eyes. Eszter slips the book still in her hands back on a shelf and then hesitantly walks closer. She stops for a moment to study Dora's face. There is sadness in the blue eyes.

"Don't worry about me," Eszter smiles. The smile is tense, but Dora knows it's more because of Eszter being worried about someone coming there rather than Dora's reaction. "I've adapted to this kind of life. I know you don't like the thought, but I really am fine."

"I know," Dora says. "Dad said you missed the library."

Eszter looks at her hands for a moment and wrings them. Dora notices a ring on one of the fingers but can't see it in much detail.

"Paul always did understand me better than Helen did," Eszter murmurs. She looks at Dora one last time, seemingly memorising every little detail on her changed face. It's been years, and Dora is now properly an adult.

"Take care of yourself, Dora," Eszter says. Dora nods her head.

"You as well."

Eszter leaves. Dora stands between the shelves for a moment longer and then goes to a window that overlooks the main door of the library. She doesn't have to wait long to see Eszter's figure making its way down the steps, then across the street. She stops in front of another dark figure just for a few seconds. The dark figure wraps an arm around Eszter's waist and then glances up at the window where Dora still stands.

Dracula nods his head and then turns his head, seemingly listening to Eszter. They walk down the snowy street as if the world was only theirs. Eszter doesn't shy away from his touch, but instead leans in. She looks at peace with it.

Dora stands there for a long time even after they've disappeared from her sight.


End file.
